Howling Gem
by SaoirseParisa
Summary: There's a lot about the Gems Steven doesn't know. However, when an old acquaintance of the Crystal Gems reappears without warning, one whose connection to the war is a dark one, cruel mysteries of the past come back to life, and the Gems may have to face their darkest fears. (Chapter 5 out of 12 written)
1. Revived Gem

**Author's Note: Hello, everyone! My name is Julia, and this is my first fanfic in the Steven Universe fandom. I just got into the show recently, and now I'm all caught up! But to tell you the truth, I haven't written about canon characters in a long time. Since 2009 to be exact, and I'm afraid that I won't be able to do Steven and his friends justice no matter what, even though I've seen many episodes multiple times. But I want to write this fanfic, as I don't like keeping my stories inside. If you don't like it, that's perfectly fine. Anyway, presenting my first ever SU fan fic, Howling Gem!**

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Mythos 1: Revived Gem

The bright yellow sun warmed Beach City and everything underneath it, bathing it in golden light. Its rays reflected off of the clear ocean waves as they danced across the sand, reaching so far into the horizon that they looked as though they could touch the sky. Seagulls cawed as they soared over the ocean to perch on the woman shaped cliff's welcoming arms.

It was truly a spectacular day to be alive.

A chubby little boy of about twelve and a bespectacled girl with darker skin sat on the sand, the sun beating down on them. The boy had a tiny black afro on his head, with matching dark eyes shining like stars. His red shirt had a big yellow star on it, and some sand got onto his sandals. His large hands sat comfortably on his blue jeans, listening intently as the turquoise dressed girl held a book in front of his face, palavering on and on with enthusiasm.

"Look, Steven! This is called Selkie Woodlands!" The girl exclaimed, her eyes shining like diamonds.

"What's it about, Connie?" Steven asked, tilting his head to one side. "Is it like the Spirit Morph Saga?"

Connie shook her head adamantly. "Nope! But I finished reading it last night, and it's so cool! I just _had_ to come here and show it to you! Okay, so it's about this girl named Saoirse whose mother died giving birth to her."

Steven hung his head low a little bit. His own mother had died the exact same way. But not exactly through natural circumstances. But he didn't let that deter him from listening further. Connie continued. "She's a half-seal, but she doesn't know she's a half-seal. She becomes friends with magical seals who accept her, and she's told that she has to save an underwater kingdom from an evil darkness called Macha, who wants to turn everyone into stones, and the only way to do it is to go all over the world finding eight rainbow colored seashells, which are the only things that can dispel Macha's magic."

"Wooooow. This is a really good story!" Steven exclaimed.

The dark haired girl couldn't stop herself from bursting into laughter. "You haven't even read it yet and you already think it's good?"

"Is that wrong?"

Connie let out a merry laugh. "Oh, Steven. Always so positive yet so simple. Hey! I can get you started if you want."

It was here that something protruding from the sand, reflecting sunlight caught Steven's attention. The item in question was round and had a distinct, pale shade of pink. Steven extended his big hand out, grabbed the item, and pulled it right out. It was a round, pale pink sea urchin shell with a myriad of small bumps covering its surface, and rubbing his finger on the bumps made him feel as though little hard balls were running across his finger. Connie leaned over to get a closer look. "Wow! That's pretty! That's a sea urchin shell."

"It kinda looks like my gem," Steven mused, pulling up his shirt to show Connie the rose pink gem resting on his abdomen. Then an idea hatched in his head that he just couldn't resist. "Hey! How about we look for pretty sea shells together! It'll be like Selkie Woodlands!" A brief pause. "I think."

The bespectacled girl stashed her book back in her backpack before standing right up. "Alrighty then!" She pointed her finger at Steven like she was a spiky haired lawyer. "Steven Quartz Universe, I challenge you to a seashell hunt! Whoever finds the coolest, awesomest, prettiest seashell wins!"

A challenge. Just the thought of a seashell collecting competition was enough to make the flames of desire stir in his soft heart. He pumped his fists, lowered his eyebrows, and gave Connie a smile that accepted her challenge. "I accept your proposal! And if you lose, you have to watch Crying Breakfast Friends with me!"

"Bring it on!"

"Ready? One...two...three...go!"

With the pink sea urchin shell in his pocket, Steven darted toward the cliff shaped like a woman, whereas Connie searched in the area closer to his beach house. Her skinny legs were submerged in cold, salty water. The feeling of water consuming her legs made her feel as though her legs lost all weight, and in a way it felt good to feel floaty and weightless. She looked in every direction, scanning the area for any seashells.

Steven crawled underneath the cliff, having already gathered plenty of seashells, namely white, blue, and brown ones. Some of them had spots on them in differing shapes, some resembling polka dots. He stashed most of them in his pocket so he wouldn't lose them. Steven sat on his knees, his bare feet digging into the sand. He had removed his sandals so it'd be easier to move around, and perhaps increase his chances of finding more seashells.

"Oh! There's one!" Steven exclaimed, standing up quickly to try and run to a blue seashell protruding up from the sand only a few feet away. All of a sudden, something snagged at his large toe, tearing open some skin. Since it wasn't attached to anything, it slipped out from underneath Steven's foot right as he tripped. He couldn't stop himself as he fell face first into the sand.

"Ouch!" He yelped. With a grunt, Steven turned himself around to observe the damage. The big toe on his left foot had a good chunk of skin ripped off, leaving a fresh, bloody wound, with the skin hanging by a thread. The culprit in question was a white rock with crack-like markings on it, along with an actual crack that split it all the way down, almost in half had it not stopped a centimeter above the very bottom. There was some blood in the crack that caught Steven's toe.

Normal kids would cry and ask their mother for a band-aid. But Steven's lips curled upward. He had a solution for this. "Nothing a little spit won't fix!" He spat a gob of spit on his hand and rubbed it on the wound. It stung as he smeared the saliva on the wound. Normally, the spit wouldn't do a thing. In this case, the saliva sparkled like a polished jewel, melting into the wound. The ripped skin melted back into Steven's toe, and the blood disappeared, and with that, his toe was good as new.

"When in doubt, use your healing spit, Steven!" He told himself, right before noting the rock he tripped on. He used his hand to pick it up and held it close. It was a shiny white rock the size of his palm. "This kinda looks like a gem. Or is it?" What he didn't know was that some of his spit melted into the rock.

"Hey Steven!" Connie found Steven and ran right up to him, her elbows almost overflowing with seashells in a variety of colors. "Check it out! Look at all of them!"

Steven took his eyes off of the rock in his hands and scanned the seashells in Connie's arms. "Hey! You collected way more than I did! But which one's the prettiest?"

"Well-"

"Huh?"

"What is it?" Connie asked, tilting her head to one side.

He held out the rock in his hand...and the crack completely disappeared! The white rock was now a perfect oval shape, without a dent in sight. If one didn't know any better, the black, crack-like markings would definitely be mistaken for cracks. But that wasn't the only thing odd about the rock.

As soon as Steven showed the rock to Connie, it suddenly emitted a piercing white light. The brightness made Steven and Connie cover their eyes, and all of their seashells fell softly into the sand. The shining gem's glow could be seen from atop the cliff. The gem floated out of Steven's hand, ascending at least two feet in the air. The two kids scrambled out of its way in case anything happened, but tried to watch and see what happened.

The white light burst into a mild explosion, and the gem generated a silhouette shaped like a human teenager of fifteen. Suddenly, the light dissipated, and out came a man with grey skin, with a shaggy head of darker grey hair and shimmering silver eyes. He was wearing a dull grey cape that was tied around his neck, stretching down to his lower back, along with a pair of puffy pants, silver sandals, and a matching belt around his waist. Attached to the back of the belt was a large ribbon, and the rock from before was on the man's left ankle. Covering his arms from his wrist to the elbow were long, dark grey arm bands. He wasn't wearing a shirt, so his chest, abdomen, and belly button were exposed for all to see.

Steven and Connie found it safe to open their eyes, and they couldn't prevent the ungraceful dropping of their jaws. A person came out of the stone! Before they could say anything, the man fell to the sand unconscious. "Whoa! Did you see that, Steven?!" Connie exclaimed, her eyes wide like saucers. "That was so cool! Is that a Gem?!"

"He might be!" Steven said as he and Connie ran over to the unconscious man. Much to their relief, they saw his chest rising and falling with the rhythm of his breathing.

"Come on! Let's go get Pearl and the others!" Connie exclaimed.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Steven told her. "The last time I made friends with a new Gem didn't go so well with them. Remember I told you about Lapis Lazuli?"

"Oh. Right," She looked down at the sleeping man. "So...what do we do? We can't just leave him here, and the Gems are sure to find out some time."

Steven crossed his arms and closed his eyes, ruminating. "Hmmm…"

It was at this time that the man opened his eyes, and with a grunt, he pulled himself up. Steven and Connie both backed up to let him stretch his arms out. The grey man turned around to see the two small children behind him. As soon as their eyes met, his eyes grew wide like saucers, and he took in a hoarse breath, like he saw a monster. He fell on his rear before scrambling toward two large rocks. The grey man crawled in between two large rocks, curled himself into a ball, buried his face in his arms, and began rocking back and forth.

The two kids looked at each other with confused faces. Was he scared? That seemed like the most plausible conclusion. Steven very slowly walked closer to the shivering grey man. "Hello!"

No answer. "Don't be afraid. We're not gonna hurt you. We wanna be your friends!"

Once again, no answer. But Steven wasn't deterred. "I'm Steven, and this is my bestie, Connie!" Connie's heart grew warm at the mention of she being his so-called bestie. She never had a best friend before she met Steven, so to hear this was something new to her...and she couldn't help but love it. "You're in Beach City, and this is my house! Well, my house is right up there," He pointed to the beach house resting on the Crystal Temple.

As usual, nothing. "Are you from Homeworld?"

"Maybe we should give him some space," Connie suggested. "It doesn't look like he wants to come out right now."

"Awww. I wanna be his friend. He seems cool," Steven complained, his voice adopting a slight whine to it. But he did think that Connie had a good point. He'll come out on his own time. There was no need to force it. "Alright then," Steven turned to the grey man. "We'll be in my house up there. If you need anything, don't be afraid to call us," He told him.

With that, he and Connie walked all the way up to the beach house, leaving the grey man to his own devices. "So did you collect any pretty seashells?"

"I don't know if they're pretty or not…"

"Well, the pink sea urchin shell's the prettiest...so that means I win! Let's watch Crying Breakfast Friends! Race ya!" Steven and Connie darted into the house.

The grey man sat in between the rocks, no longer in the fetal position. But he anxiously scanned everything around him, his eyebrows furrowing. The sky was a perfect blue, without a single cloud in sight. The sand beneath his sandals was soft and cool, namely because it was in the shade. Seagulls cawed loudly, flying across the sea with their long wings outstretched. To the normal person, a sight like this was commonplace, even beautiful. But this only made the grey man retreat further into the rocks, and he buried his face in his hands.

Memories flooded his mind, and his small body trembled. The yellow silhouette of a woman loomed over him, larger than even the giant stone woman looking over the ocean right now. Explosions forming colorful clouds of smoke billowing in the sky. The clashing of cold steel and metal, flying from all directions. He froze at the still lingering memories, sitting in tense silence. He was so sure he had escaped them. The flood of memories was overwhelming.

The past pours out all at once, and the crisp air of Beach City is suddenly cloying with the overlapping scents of smoke and melted metal. Burying his face in his arms, everything turned black. Just the way he liked it.

* * *

"Why did you do this?!" A sobbing apple bawled.

"I only wanted to make you happy!" A sentient carton of milk sobbed.

The tiny TV showed the apple and the milk carton bursting into tears amidst a blank, periwinkle background. Soon, a waffle entered the scene watching them cry before crying himself.

Steven's curious eyes were glued to the TV, his chin resting on both hands, lying on his white comforter with his back facing the ceiling. Connie sat at the foot of the bed with her legs crossed, but her face donned a confused, almost annoyed look. "Sorry, but I don't see what's so good about this show," She said without mincing her words. "All they do is cry over stupid things all the time!"

"That's kind of the point," Steven piped in.

"What do you see in this?"

"I think it's cute! Oh! A new episode's gonna air tomorrow! It's gonna be a really good one!" Steven exclaimed.

Connie let out a groan. She wished she hadn't accepted Steven's part of the challenge. Better yet, she wished she hadn't challenged him to a seashell hunt after all. Then again, she had seen worse shows, so perhaps Crying Breakfast Friends wasn't bad. But she still couldn't like it as much as Steven did. She did look out the big window next to her, seeing the waves drown the sand in its wake. How was that grey Gem doing? She hoped he hadn't disappeared or ran away. Was he still there?

"Do you think he's still there?" Steven asked. Good to know he was thinking the same thing.

"Probably. He could be scared," Connie answered.

Steven rummaged through some shelves and pulled out some books, stashing them into a large, cheeseburger shaped backpack. "I have an idea! How about we hang out where he's at! Maybe if he just sees us hanging around, he'll realize we're nothing to be afraid of," He suggested.

"But we shouldn't force it."

"I know. We can just do our own thing while he watches. Maybe he'll want to play with us later on."

"I see what you're getting at," Connie brushed some hair out of her face so she could see better. "It may take a while, though. He's not gonna want to be friends with us in a day, I think."

The chubby boy extended his arms out like a seagull stretching out its wings. "That's okay! It'll be fun! We can talk about lotsa stuff! Oh! That reminds me! I haven't told you about that living island we fought last week, didn't we?"

The bespectacled girl's eyes widened with surprise. "A living island?!" Was such a thing even possible? Then again, she had seen pink lions, watery skyscrapers, a giant penny, a green and pink person with three arms the size of her own house, maybe bigger, and who knows what else. Living islands just had to be possible. After all, magical destiny stuff was all around her, though it mostly revolved around Steven. She just had to hear this story. "Tell me!"

Eager to listen to his harrowing tale of battling the living island, the kids all raced back to where the grey Gem was. Much to their relief, there he was, still in the fetal position, his face buried in his arms. The kids sat down, and Steven palavered on and on about how he and the Crystal Gems battled a living island.

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 **So...what do you think? Any problems? Did I keep Steven and Connie in character? I hope so. If not, please tell me and feel free to offer suggestions so I can change things accordingly. Don't worry, the Gem is an OC, but he won't be a Gary Stu, I promise. The story will be twelve chapters total, and I have a lot planned for it, so look forward to it! The next chapter will be longer, so this'll just be a bite sized sample of what's to come. Plus, I'm trying to recover from some verbal abuse another fandom put me through, so if you don't like my story, that's perfectly fine. Any concrit is welcome, but PLEASE be polite and civilized about it. I don't like drama or whiners.**

 **Crystal Gems forever! And who's excited for StevenBomb 4.0?! I sure am!**


	2. Talking Gem

Mythos 2: Talking Gem

Over the next week or so, Steven and Connie made it a point to always hang out underneath the cliff, right in front of where the grey Gem was hiding, so as to gradually convince him that they're not anything he should be afraid of. At first, the Gem didn't respond to anything. He just kept sitting in the fetal position, sometimes rocking back and forth. But three days after they met him, he finally held his head up to silently watch them play, talk, even sing. It wasn't anything big, but it was a step in the right direction.

For the most part, Steven did everything he could to make conversation with him. Since the Gem never responded, Steven found it safe to go on and on about anything. The grey Gem didn't leave his hiding spot, even for the smallest thing. He didn't expect the Gem to respond back. It was better to let him respond on his own time. But that didn't mean Steven wasn't going to leave him out of their play dates.

"Connie lives just outside Beach City. Her parents are rather strict, though."

"I'd love to take you to the Big Donut sometime. I go there every day. They have the best donuts!"

"My dad owns a car wash. It's called It's A Wash. There isn't much there, but I go and visit him almost all the time. When I'm not going on missions with the Gems, that is."

"Sometimes I like to ride my bike on the boardwalk. Riding bikes is good for your legs."

"Fry bits are great! They're really tasty! I should really get some for you and Connie. They're not exactly healthy, though."

"My mom was a Crystal Gem. She was really nice and beautiful."

Steven's plan seemed to work, as the grey Gem would smile at them from time to time. Just a small, timid smile, but it was progress. The grey Gem listened attentively as Steven and Connie did whatever kids would. Read books out loud, talk about silly things, play their violin or ukulele, etc. Whenever they sang, the grey Gem would join in by swaying his body or shaking his hands, joining in on the music. The smile on the grey Gem's face when he moved to the music looked so peaceful and serene, like music brought out his real self. Perhaps this was just what he needed.

Five days after they met the grey Gem, Connie came by the house once more, holding a big, thick book with a picture of jewels and gemstones on the front cover. The title read _All The World's Gemstones_. "Hey Steven! Look! My mom's letting me read this really cool book on real gems!" She couldn't help but shove it really close to his face, right as she met him and the grey Gem in their usual spot.

"Real gemstones? Cool!" Steven sat down right as Connie opened the book. What they didn't know was that the grey Gem finally crawled out of his hiding spot, peering down at the pages of the book. The book showed pictures of many colorful gemstones. Red, orange, purple, green, blue, grey, black, silver, there were an abundance of colored gemstones described in the book. Steven and Connie flipped through the pages, but stopped at a page describing a white rock.

A white rock with black, crack-like markings.

"Hey! Isn't this your gem?" Steven asked the grey Gem, pointing to the picture on the page.

Connie adjusted her glasses and looked closer. "It says here this is a howlite, discovered in the late 1800s," Connie read aloud some excerpts of the book.

The grey Gem's eyes widened a little bit. Not nearly as much as when he first met the kids. He leaned in closer and, using his index finger, pointed to the gem in the picture. Then he pointed at himself. Steven and Connie looked at each other with confused faces before it dawned on Steven. It all came together. "Ohhh! I get it!" Steven exclaimed, his big teeth showing through his smile. "Your name's Howlite, isn't it!"

With a shy smile, Howlite nodded, answering Steven's question without a word. Without thinking, Steven let out a gasp and flew his arms around Howlite happily. "It's so nice to meet you, Howlite!"

"Steven!" Connie scolded. She couldn't believe he just up and hugged him like that. What if Howlite would get scared? They tried not to force things. Oddly enough, Howlite didn't look bothered by Steven's affectionate gesture. He didn't freeze up, tense up, nor did he make any attempt to remove Steven from him. Instead, Howlite simply smiled softly and stroke Steven's black hair with one hand.

After a brief moment, Steven decided to release Howlite. "Hey! Now that you're out, do you want to come inside and hang out with us? I wanna show you my room!"

Howlite stood up and nodded. But before they could trot off to Steven's house, Howlite came face to face with a large, cotton candy pink lion with an even lighter pink mane, with a matching tuft of fur at the end of its tail. The lion's ears were round, like golf balls, and had a maroon nose shaped like a heart. Howlite and the pink lion were so close, their noses could almost touch.

"Lion!" Steven exclaimed, prompting Howlite to take a few steps backward. Steven trotted over to the pink lion aptly named...well, Lion, and stroke his pink mane gently. "There you are! Did you get lonely and decide to hang out with us? You're such a good boy!"

Connie noticed the confused look on Howlite's face and decided to explain. "That's Lion. He's Steven's pet...lion, as you can see."

Like usual, Howlite didn't move a muscle for a brief moment. However, when Steven stopped petting Lion, everyone noticed Howlite very slowly walking closer to the pink lion, with one hand extended outward. Steven smiled. "Do you want to pet Lion? Don't worry! He doesn't bite!"

Howlite shook his head up and down, nodding vigorously. Sensing that Howlite wanted to pet him, Lion sat down on the sand, his tail swishing back and forth, pushing some sand away. The kids had to admit, Howlite looked strangely unafraid of Lion, a far cry from his behavior from when they first met him. The fear in the grey Gem's eyes practically vanished, and the smile on his face stretched farther than usual. Now Howlite looked serene and calm. Lion sensed this, and didn't move a muscle so as to not scare him.

Very slowly, Howlite extended his hand out to stroke Lion's pale pink mane. Once his fingers made contact, he brushed them across his fur. The cottony softness felt almost ethereal to the grey Gem, and the warmth was absolutely unmistakable. Lion didn't move a muscle, only blinking his eyes twice. The corners of Howlite's cheeks turned a darker shade of pink, and the corners of his mouth stretched farther this time, making him look like a child who got a new pet. On impulse, Howlite pushed his head into Lion's mane, rubbing his face right inside. Lion put one of his paws on the Gem's back.

"Awwww! How sweet!" Steven crooned, his eyes twinkling like stars. "Lion likes Howlite!"

"If that isn't cute as heck, I don't know what is," Connie agreed. "By the way, where are the Gems?"

"They're looking for Peridot," Steven replied. "They said they're looking in more dangerous areas that they don't think I can handle," He added, looking down at his sandals with a despondent look.

Ever since he managed to control his powers better, the Crystal Gems had invited him on more and more missions, which meant that they trusted him. He even learned things about the Gems that they were desperate to keep secret from him. Even Steven knew he wasn't the fragile kid that they would sometimes think he was. They were much better about it now, but still. Perhaps things were different this time around.

"You didn't tell them about Howlite, did you?"

Steven shook his head. "Nope."

With that, Howlite and Lion accompanied Steven and Connie into Steven's house. Howlite stared in awe at the insides of the human house. The kitchen counter was shaped in a perfect 90 degree angle, with a granite countertop that really shined under the artificial light. On Howlite's left was a set of stairs that led to a little room, probably Steven's room, with a big window overlooking the beach. Above the entrance was a picture of a large woman with beautifully curling coral pink hair cascading far past her back. The woman had pinky white skin, full lips, and was wearing a snow white dress, with a star shaped hole on her abdomen, revealing her pink gem.

It looked exactly like Steven's gem. But Howlite didn't know that.

Next to the stairs was a little cream colored couch and a small, orange coffee table. Just past the living room was another room with a single, crystallized warp pad sitting right in the middle. Light blue crystals protruded from various parts of the cave walls, shining in soft blue lights. At the end of the room was a door with a star shaped mark on it, and resting on the tips of the star were tiny gemstones. Red, blue, purple, white, and pink stones dotted the star.

Steven and Connie stormed up the stairs, and the chubby boy pulled out a small ukulele. It was coated in pale yellow, orange, and dark pink paint, painted in a flame like design, even though it didn't resemble anything like a flame. Steven noticed Howlite staring at it intensely.

"This is called a ukulele. Have you ever seen one before?"

Howlite shook his head sideways. "I can play you a song if you like," Steven sat on his white comforter, with Connie doing the same. Howlite looked down at the bed. It was low because of not having any legs, and he wasn't sure if he could fit. "Come on, Howlite! Sit with us!"

Then again, it'd be rude to reject Steven's offer, so he sat down. The white comforter was soft and plushy. He could feel the cotton bouncing around inside it. "Still want that song about the snack monster who likes animal byproduct?"

Upon hearing that, Connie burst into loud laughter, bending over and clutching her stomach like she heard the funniest joke ever. "You still remember that? Sure! Go for it!" She said once she stopped laughing, wiping a tear out from her eye.

Before he could string out some tunes, Steven happened to glance at his favorite Cookie Cat alarm clock. It read 11:37 AM. Cookie Cat...that's it! "I have an even better idea!" Steven put the ukulele down, darted to the freezer, flung the door open, and pulled out three candy bars, all donning a picture of a smiling, dark brown cat face, with one white eye and another pink eye, with two sets of teeth, the left half being white, and the right half being pink. Steven enthusiastically slammed the candy bar in both Connie and Howlite's hands.

"Cookie Cat?" Connie asked. Howlite walked over to the sink, put the wrapper down on the counter, grabbed a glass of water and turned on the faucet. He stuck the glass underneath the water, letting it fill up to the top before turning it off. After that, Howlite silently sipped the water down in one gulp.

"Yeah! I don't think I ever had you try any Cookie Cats!" Steven exclaimed, showing Connie all the Cookie Cats in the freezer. "When they went out of stock, Pearl and Amethyst got a whole bunch of them for me. Try one! They're really good!"

With a shrug, Connie undid the wrapper, pulled out the sticky ice cream sandwich and bit off the cookie cat's ear. The sticky chocolate covering melted in her mouth and slid down her throat without a hitch. "Wow! This is great!"

Howlite finally ripped the wrapper and pulled out the Cookie Cat sandwich. His lips curled upward at the sight of the Cookie Cat. Some chocolate melted onto his fingers, not that he noticed, and it felt cold on his hands. He couldn't help but chuckle a bit at the sight of the sandwich having one white eye and another pink eye.

"You know what that means!"

Connie, Howlite, and Lion all shook their heads silently.

And then Steven broke into song.

" _Oohhhh!_

 _He's a frozen treat with an all new taste!_

 _'cause he came to this planet from outer space!_

 _A refugee of an interstellar war!_

 _But now he's at your local grocery store!_

 _Cookie Cat!_

 _He's a pet for your tummy!_

 _Cookie Cat!_

 _He's super duper yummy!_

 _Cookie Cat!_

 _He left his family behind!_

 _Cookie Caaaaaat!_

 _Now available at Gurgins off Rt. 109!"_

Holding his unopened Cookie Cat in the air, he struck a pose. Connie clapped her hands and giggled at the same time. Howlite's smile got even bigger. Lion didn't say a word, and just leaped on the couch, rolling on it like a house cat. "You should be a professional rapper when you grow up!" Connie complimented. "That was great!"

The chubby boy's face turned red and he put a hand in his black afro. "Oh, I don't really have any plans to be a rapper…" The two kids broke into laughter. Then, it happened.

"Coo…"

The laughter stopped. What was that? Connie and Steven looked at each other with confused faces. Where did that come from? "Coo!"

Was that Howlite? The kids turned to see Howlite holding the Cookie Cat in one hand, his face contorting like he ate something sour. "Coo...Coo...Cook…" A raspy, shaky voice came out, but it wasn't loud enough to make a natural voice. That didn't matter to the kids, as their eyes widened with delight.

"Hey! You're trying to talk, aren't you?!" Steven exclaimed.

"C-C-C-Cook...kie…"

He was right. Howlite was trying to talk. Steven knew he had to take this chance. "You're trying to say Cookie Cat, right? Come on! Say Cookie Cat!" Steven told him.

"Don't force it, okay?" Connie reminded him, putting a gentle hand on his shoulder.

The words wanted to come out. No, they needed to come out. Howlite knew this. But the words just wouldn't come out. Come on, Howlite, he told himself. You can do it. "Coo...kie…" He spat out. "...Cat!" What? The words actually came out? Howlite's eyes widened like this was the first time he ever talked. "Cookie Cat…" He finally said, in a much clearer voice this time. He sounded just like a fifteen year old boy.

"You did it, Howlite!" Steven leaped onto Howlite, trapping him in a warm but tight hug. "You said your first word! You said Cookie Cat!"

"Woohoo! Alright!" Connie cheered, throwing her fist in the air like she won a basketball game.

"I knew you could do it!"

A strange warmth enveloped Howlite's heart. The kindness pouring out from this boy was overwhelming, but oddly enough, it wasn't cloying. The suffocating feeling he had felt had completely vanished. Now he felt light as a feather, like he could breathe. Howlite gently put Steven down on the floor before musing, "...Steven?"

Steven's eyes glistened. Did Howlite just say his name? There was no mistaking it. He did. "Yep! That's me!"

The grey Gem turned over to Connie. "...Connie?"

Connie held her hand out. "Connie Maheswaran. It's nice to meet you, Howlite!" At first, Howlite didn't take her hand. He looked down at her hand then at Connie a few times, back and forth before he shakily extended his own hand out. He cupped Connie's small hand in his and instead of shaking it, stroke it gently with his finger. Her hands were warm and soft, but he could see faint, healing callouses on her palm.

Swordfighting callouses. Howlite knew those marks all too well. Clashing steel rung through his mind, but he didn't dare let those sounds consume his mind. He needed to stay in the present.

"I'm...Howlite…" He murmured shyly, in a low voice, before letting go of Connie's hand.

"This is great! Howlite can talk now!" Steven exclaimed. "Now we can all hang out and do stuff together!"

"Uh…"

Everyone turned to Howlite. "Hm?"

"How does...that song go?"

"Huh?"

"Uhh...frozen treat with an all new taste…" Howlite began singing the Cookie Cat song. But he stumbled on some parts, inadvertently forgetting some of the lyrics to the catchy rap. "Came to planet from outer space. Refugee of...stellar war. Now in...grocery store. Cookie cat...pet for your tummy…" It didn't help that he sung it in such a low voice, his singing came off more like heavy breathing. "Cookie Cat...super duper yummy...Cookie Cat...left family behind…"

A firm hand pressed onto his shoulder, stopping him from singing further. Howlite turned to find Steven smiling at him. "Don't worry my friend! I'm practically a Cookie Cat master! I'll teach you how to sing the song faster than you can say interstellar war!"

"Interstellar war!" Howlite exclaimed in a much louder voice this time. "That didn't work."

"I didn't mean literally."

"Oh."

After that, Steven and Connie spent the whole day singing the Cookie Cat song, and teaching Howlite how to sing it. At about five, Connie's cell phone let out a loud ring tone. She was quick to pull it out and pick it up. "Hello?"

"Connie!" A middle aged woman's voice exclaimed through the other line. "When are you coming home? It's almost dinner time."

"Oh! Sorry!" Connie stood up. "I'll be there in a jiffy! Bye!" With that, she ended the call, giving Steven a despondent look. "Sorry, Steven. My parents want me home by dinner."

"Awww. No fair," Steven mused, looking down at his sandals with a despondent look.

"I'll come back tomorrow. Promise."

With that, Connie waved to her friends before running out of the house all by herself. Steven, Howlite, and Lion were all alone in the beach house, watching as Connie's figure disappeared past the cliff. "She's a nice girl," Howlite said.

"Definitely with you on that one."

Night fell onto Beach City, draping the sky in a fantastic dark blue curtain, bejeweled by twinkling stars, crowned by a round moon. The moon looked exactly like a real howlite stone. Howlite slept on the couch whereas Steven slept in his bed. However, Steven found himself awakening to the early morning blue, rubbing his tired eyes with his chubby fists. His ears caught the sound of a voice. Who was that, and where was it coming from?

Draped in his pale blue pajamas, Steven pulled himself out of bed before moseying down the stairs. The voice became clearer as he got to the door. Someone was singing, but who? Steven very quietly opened the door to the front porch. Walking down the long steps that led to the sand, Steven found the source of the singing.

It was Howlite, standing before the ocean, allowing the calm waves to submerge his legs in water. He moved his arms up and down, sometimes putting them to his chest as he soulfully sung a sad ballad. Steven silently walked closer to hear it better. He didn't want to say anything lest he scare his new friend.

" _Little howling gem, the stars shine bright,_

 _As the full moon shapes itself into a gem,_

 _With the flames of courage shining from within,_

 _Howl with all your might, face your fears for them,_

 _Your comrades perished in the name of the law,_

 _You cry in the night, yearning for their gentle touch,_

 _The feeling of death haunts you day and night,_

 _Leaving you in a painful, suffocating fright._

 _The light of hope is there, within your grasp,_

 _But where is that light, you ask tearfully,_

 _It's in your heart, it's still there,_

 _Even if you can't see it, it can shine brighter than any sun."_

With that, the song ended. Howlite looked up at the beautiful white moon, admiring its beauty. In a way, he could almost see the rabbit in the moon. He wondered if the craters on its white surface resembled the crack-like markings on his own gem. The sound of clapping pulled him back to reality, turning him around to find Steven applauding him. Howlite gasped, and his face turned grey, just like his hair.

"You...heard me, didn't you?" Howlite averted his gaze, clutching his arm with one hand. The waves once again tried to submerge his feet in water in a miserable attempt to drag him in.

"You kinda woke me up."

"Sorry…" Howlite mused ruefully.

"It's okay. I like your song...and you have a nice voice," Steven said, walking next to him. "The night sure is pretty."

"Yeah. It is. It's peaceful, too."

"Hey! You can talk like me!" Steven exclaimed. "You couldn't do that before."

"I...had lost my voice."

"How?"

Howlite said nothing. The grey Gem pressed his lips together as though he were desperate to keep them sealed shut. Steven could see the anguish in his eyes, and that one of his fists was shaking. Steven smiled. "It's okay. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"Thanks…Where's your mother?"

"Hm?" Steven tilted his head to one side.

"You said...your mom was a Crystal Gem. Where...is she?"

"She's not here anymore," Steven replied matter-of-factly. The fact that his mother died giving birth to him had stopped being a sore spot long ago. "She gave up her physical form to create me. I have her gem though. See?" Steven pulled up his shirt to show Howlite his gem. It was a deep, rose pink. Just like the lady in the big photo. "We better get back inside. But be sure to hide so the Gems don't see you. I won't want them to think you're their enemy, and the last time I tried to be friends with another Gem didn't go so well."

Howlite nodded without question, and with that, they went back inside.

* * *

The night left Beach City behind as the sun forced it out of the area. The bright morning sun lit up Beach City once more, and it's light reflected off of the waves, making the ocean sparkle like polished jewels waiting to be discovered. The day was yet again blessed with another perfect blue sky. The seagulls danced across the wind, their wings catching the breeze without a hitch.

Steven moseyed around the kitchen, putting waffles in the toaster before pulling out a jar of maple syrup. He poured two glasses of fresh milk before pulling out two cups of vanilla flavored yogurt from the refrigerator. As he pulled out some spoons, the warp pad let out a beam of blue light, which dissipated soon after, and out came a young, pale skinned woman.

"Steven! There you are!" The woman exclaimed in a ladylike voice. She had short, strawberry blonde hair that was pointed at the back, and sitting between her bangs, right on her forehead, was a white, oval shaped pearl, setting off her turquoise eyes. She had a long, pointed nose, and was wearing a sleeveless blue green top with a yellow star on it, a lighter green ribbon wrapped around her waist, yellow shorts, pink socks, and green ballet shoes.

"Pearl!" Steven ran over and hugged his beloved friend. "What's up? How are Garnet and Amethyst? How's the mission going?"

"Oh…" Pearl averted his gaze. "We've been having some trouble. Peridot escaped yet again, and now we've been stuck fighting a giant-"

"Foot?" Steven interrupted.

"Ugh! No," Pearl corrected, putting a hand on her forehead. "A giant walcnevar. It's a giant black bird but with claws on its wings. Garnet and Amethyst had to fuse into Sugilite just to fight it on equal footing," She kneeled down to Steven and stroke his hair gently. "I just came by to make sure everything's okay on your end."

"Everything's great! Connie and I are having a lot of fun," Steven replied cheerfully.

"That's good. But if we win this fight, we should be back by the afternoon at least," Pearl told him gently before standing back up. "If there's any trouble, go and get your father. Make sure you keep the doors locked at night at all times, don't let any strangers in the house, and especially don't sneak out of the house at night."

Steven rolled his eyes. He loved Pearl dearly, and knew she meant well, but sometimes he did wish she'd quit nagging about the little stuff every now and again. "I know, Pearl."

"Good. We'll be back soon," Pearl stepped onto the warp pad before disappearing into a blue beam of light, which itself disappeared soon after.

Right after she left, Steven darted up the stairs and stopped at his bed. "Howlite. You can come out now," He whispered. Howlite pulled off the covers and stretched his arms out. Steven was quick to give Howlite his breakfast. Cling! The waffles were pushed out of the toaster, and Steven went back to tend to them.

The two sat in Steven's room and consumed their meal. Gems didn't need to eat since they get their energy from their gems, but can eat if they want to. Howlite was one of those gems. He didn't mind eating. He liked the taste of anything he ate. Maple syrup flooded his mouth and drowned his taste buds. But yogurt didn't exactly mix well with it. Milk was good enough to get rid of the aftertaste, but it itself didn't have the best taste.

"That was...Pearl, right?" Howlite asked meekly, finishing his breakfast.

"Yeah. Hey! There's someone I want you to meet!"

"Huh?"

Without getting the chance to ask who, Steven pulled Howlite out of the house. It took them a few minutes, but they came within the vicinity of a small car wash place called It's A Wash. It was a relatively plain building with a big set of neon lights forming a sign on top of one of the roofs, shaped like an elephant using its trunk to give itself a bath. Lying in a beach chair next to a big van was an older man with long, light brown hair cascading all the way down to his knees, his eyes obscured by black sunglasses, along with a matching beard and mustache combo framing his large mouth. He had a very distinct tan, and most of his body was red like a tomato except for his chest, shoulders, and legs. He was wearing a sleeveless white top, torn up blue jeans, and sandals.

"Hey Daaad!" Steven's voice pulled the man back into reality. He knew that voice anything. He pulled off his sunglasses to see Steven and Howlite running up toward him. He couldn't help the smile that tickled his face as he stood up and outstretched his long arms.

"Hey Stevie Wonder! Come here!" Steven leaped into his father's arms and allowed him to spin around happily. The two broke out into merry laughter. "How's it goin', little man?"

"Great! I made a new friend! Let me introduce you!" Steven was quick to leap out of his father's arms and pull Howlite closer. "This is my new friend Howlite! He's a Gem too, just like Pearl and the others! Howlite, this is my dad, Greg Universe."

The grey Gem averted Greg's gaze, glancing at some ants piling dirt together to make their house. It was amazing how tiny animals like that could do so much just to do what they wanted. "Wow. This is a first. It's nice to meet you, Howlite," Greg said with a laugh. Howlite didn't say a word. He just smiled and waved his hand slowly from side to side. "What's wrong?"

"He's just shy, Dad."

"Oh. I see. Sorry about that. Didn't mean to get in your space," Greg said apologetically.

Howlite shook his head side to side as if to say, "No. It's okay."

"Man of few words, huh? Nothing wrong with that," Greg said.

"We thought maybe we could hang out here for a while. Is that okay?"

"Sure!" Greg wrapped his arm around Steven and gave him a fist full of noogie. "You're welcome here anytime, kid! Hey! How about I put on some Philosophy Majors to get you in the mood."

Howlite raised an eyebrow. "Philosophy...Majors?"

Once Greg set up the record player and put a vinyl record inside, light, cheery music filled the atmosphere, and Steven took Howlite by the hands before spinning him around. Was this human music? Howlite had never heard it before. Lofty melodies and sentimental lyrics created a romantic atmosphere, and Howlite could feel his heart being moved by the music. Whoever created the music certainly had a knack for it, and he had to admit, dancing along with it was quite fun. In a brief moment, Howlite wished this moment could go on forever.

* * *

 **Update: Edited this chapter a little to rectify an inconsistency.**


	3. Courageous Gem

Mythos 3: Courageous Gem

Not once did Howlite think a day like this would ever come again.

A day in which he would be truly happy. Smiling like a loon. Doing what he wanted freely, without fear of retribution or punishment. Truly being himself. Surrounded by people who were genuinely nice and kind, and who didn't have dark thoughts or intentions in their hearts. To Howlite, this was rarer than any kind of treasure...and the most invaluable. He had no idea Earth-or rather, a small part of it-was so pleasant, so peaceful, so...welcoming. True, he assumed that there were way more humans on Earth than the ones he met at Beach City, so there had to be more he didn't know about. But the humans he did meet were the best people he could ever met, and he only knew them for about a week at the very most.

Blue sky. A bright sun warming his skin. Joyful, merry smiles on everyone's faces. Beautiful music playing on an old vinyl record, whatever that was. People being nice to each other. Howlite had thought such beautiful things were extinct, or at least squashed by the oppressive life he had on Homeworld. Why couldn't Homeworld be like this? Had both worlds changed? How long had his gem been broken? Furthermore, how did his gem get fixed? There were so many questions lingering in his mind. He certainly didn't remember a house being on the cliff the last time he was there, and there certainly weren't people like Steven, Connie, and Greg many millennia ago. Regardless, he'd rather have questions in his mind than those awful memories, and at this point, he could ask them questions at another time.

Steven and Connie were the best thing that ever happened to him. He couldn't believe how genuinely nice they were. Never before had he met people like them. Sweet kids who went out of their way to not only teach him about Earth, the things they liked and disliked, and didn't have evil intentions, but wanted him to be a part of their lives. They didn't force him to do anything he didn't want to. They gave him space. They let him come around at his own time. They helped him out of the kindness of their hearts, and they didn't have to.

Where had people like that been all his life?

Best of all...he got to hear _her_ voice again. Her lofty voice. What a lovely sound it still had after all those years! Too bad Steven wouldn't let him talk with her, but then again, he had his reasons, and they weren't bad.

Now, he, Connie, and Steven were singing to their heart's content while Greg watched. Once again, they were singing the Cookie Cat commercial jingle, complete with microphones. This time, they all had a part in it.

Steven: _He's a frozen treat with an all new taste!_

Connie: _'cause he came to this planet from outer space!_

Howlite: _A refugee of an interstellar war!_

SCH: _But now he's at your local grocery store! Cookie Cat!_

Steven: _He's a pet for your tummy!_

SCH: _Cookie Cat!_

Connie: _He's super duper yummy!_

SCH: _Cookie Cat!_

Howlite: _He left his family behind!_

SCH: _Cookie Caaaaaat!_

Steven: _Now available…_

Connie: _...at Gurgins..._

Howlite: _...off Rt. 109!_

A goofy smile tickled Greg's face as he gave them a round of applause. "Woohoo! That was great, kids!" His big hands clapped for them for quite a while. "You should totally enter the world of show business!"

Steven and Connie burst into merry laughter, like any kid would do. Howlite just ignored Greg and peered into his van. The van was just loaded with all kinds of weird junk. The grey Gem had to wonder how Greg could live in his own vehicle. Shirts, pants, CDs, shoes, picture frames, sunglasses, sun block, beach chairs, along with other odds and ends Howlite couldn't put a name to. But there were some things in the van that caught Howlite's attention. Particularly swatches of brown, white, and pale pink cloth. Just like Cookie Cat's colors. Silently, he pulled them out of the junk pile and examined them closely.

"Has Howlite met the Gems yet?" Greg asked, scratching his oval shaped goatee.

Steven shook his head. "No. We're gonna wait on that. I don't want them thinking he's their enemy," He answered, tapping the street beneath him with his sandal.

"But you can't hide him from the Gems forever," Greg reminded him. "They're gonna find out sooner or later. You should be honest with them. I'm sure they'll understand that Howlite's not their enemy."

Flashing a forced smile, Steven asked, "You think that'll work, Dad?"

Greg put a hand on his son's shoulder. "It's better to tell the honest truth than a kind lie. Trust me. I've been there myself," It was here that he glanced at Howlite, who kept on staring at the fabric in his hands. "Oh! I've had those for years, but never got to put'em to use!"

"They're…pretty…" Howlite whispered in his usual low voice.

"You can keep them if you want."

Could he really? Was he really willing to part with something just like that? Howlite flipped his head up and locked eyes with Greg. "But...aren't these yours?" He asked.

"It's okay. I have enough junk in my van already," Greg told him with a forced chuckle, pointing to the mountain of junk taking up almost ninety percent of his van. "You're actually doing me a big favor, so don't be shy. Take them."

The Gem's cheeks turned a darker shade of grey as he held the cloths to his chest. His first gift from a human being. Just holding these gifts in his arms made his heart grow warm. Howlite's lips curled upward in gratitude as he shuffled his feet. "Th-Th-Thank you...Greg…"

"Don't mention it!"

All Greg did was simply put a hand on Howlite's shoulder. As soon as they made contact, an uncomfortable shiver went down Howlite's spine, and his eyes widened as though he had seen something horrible, like a murder. Greg didn't notice, as his eyes were closed when he did it, but for a brief moment, Howlite's chest grew tight, like someone had clasped a large hand around it. A bodiless yellow hand had bruised his skin many times before. It was a wonder that the marks had finally disappeared after all this time. Surely, Greg was only trying to be affectionate. He would never hit Howlite the way the yellow hand did, he told himself.

No. That couldn't be true. He had known these people for a short time, but that was enough to convince him that they weren't like Homeworld. Oppressive, totalitarian, barbaric Homeworld. A flash of yellow reappeared in his mind. Curls of long, blonde hair cascaded downward like an octopus wanting to eat its prey. An evil smile loomed over him. Howlite shook his head to dispel those awful memories from his mind. Now was the time to be happy, to have fun, to not worry about that stuff. For all he knew, they could be dead, and if they were alive, they would never find him here.

There was nothing to worry about. Absolutely nothing.

The grey gem looked down to try and take his mind off of things. A fluffy purple cat sat in front of him, with big, lofty eyes staring right up at him, accompanied by a friendly, if somewhat mischievous cat smile. The cat's fluffy tail flopped back and forth, and its long ears twitched a few times. Resting on its chest was what appeared to be a round, plum purple gemstone. A warm smile creeped back onto Howlite's face. What was this creature? He had to admit, it sure was cute. He slowly extended one of his hands out to pet it…

Only for the cat to hold a paw to its mouth, gesturing for him to be quiet. The cat suddenly glowed in a purple light, shrinking in size. Howlite almost fell on his rear had he not managed to keep his balance. When he looked down, he saw that the cat had turned into a pair of glasses. Glasses without any lens. The only thing different about them was the purple gem right in the middle.

"Hmm?" Connie looked down, noticing the glasses. She bent down to pick them up, examining them with her eyes. "I wonder if someone dropped these."

All of a sudden, the lens of the glasses turned white with black dots on them. They almost resembled eyes. A mouth formed at the base of the glasses. Glasses didn't have mouths or eyes. "Connie! I am your glasses!"

"Gyah!" Connie's eyes grew so wide, they looked like saucers, and she took two steps back after suddenly dropping the glasses to the ground. Before they could hit the ground and break, it morphed into purple light.

Once the purple light dissipated, out came a pudgy, dumpy woman about a foot taller than the two kids, just two feet shorter than Greg. The purple skinned woman had scraggly, pale violet hair cascading all the way down to her ankles, just like Greg's, with black eyes gleaming like those of a little kid dying to pull a prank on someone. Resting on her chest was a round, purple gemstone, covered by a sleeveless black shirt. She was also wearing grey pants with black stars on the knees and white boots. As soon as she reformed, she rolled on the floor in merry laughter.

"Bahahahaha! You should've seen your face, Connie!" The purple woman bellowed through her laughter.

"Ha ha! Very funny, Amethyst!" Connie snapped back, her surprise morphing into casual anger. Steven and Greg turned to look at the laughing purple woman, their eyes wide with confusion. A smirk tickled Connie's face. "Hey, Amethyst!" She pointed to her chest. "There's a stinkbug on your chest!"

"Wha-huh?"

As soon as Amethyst looked down at her chest, Connie's finger swished upward, flicking the purple woman's nose, making it vibrate. Soon, Connie was the one laughing. "Now we're even!"

"You're gonna get it now!" Amethyst let out a pretend roar as she held her hands in the air, shaping them like claws, and began chasing Connie all around the van. Both girls laughed merrily as they ran around, chasing each other. All Howlite did was stand in his usual position in silent, frightened awe.

"Amethyst!" Steven exclaimed, eyes wide with bewilderment. "When did you get here?"

The purple woman stopped in her tracks, allowing Connie to get away. "Just now, Ste-Man," Amethyst replied like the question was the most normal thing in the world. It took a little while for her to finally notice Howlite standing before her. He continued to stand there, shivering, clutching the fabric in his hand. Amethyst stared at him with her purple eyes, tilting her head to one side in confusion.

"Who's this dude?" Amethyst asked.

Steven and Connie exchanged frightened glances. Amethyst doesn't know who Howlite is. Howlite didn't move, not even an inch. The purple woman's eyes widened, her smile morphing into an angry frown.

"Hey! You must be one of Peridot's cronies!" Amethyst exclaimed.

"Amethyst!" Steven cried. "He's not-" The purple woman gave him no time to clear up the situation. She had already pulled a black whip out from the gem on her chest. Howlite was too frightened to move, frozen like a deer caught in headlights. It wasn't like Amethyst gave him much time to react anyway, as she had already coiled her whip all around him like a snake would trap its prey.

The grey gem tried to walk, but he couldn't walk two steps as his legs were being tightly squeezed by the whip. All of a sudden, Amethyst used both of her pudgy arms to pick him up and hold him like he was a log before scurrying off into the distance.

"Amethyst! Waaaaait!" Steven gave chase. All sorts of worries ran through his mind. What if the gems would hurt him? Amethyst already thinks he's working for Peridot. He had to stop her and help him.

"Thanks for having me over, Mr. Universe!" Connie told Greg before running after Steven. Greg was left alone to tend to his van.

* * *

Pearl and another, much taller gem walked across the sandy beach, their minds focused on the blue sky above, unmarred by any clouds. The large gem had a pitch black, cube shaped afro, her cerise skin pink like a garnet stone, and light pink visors covered her eyes. Her shoulders were covered by orchid, oval shaped shoulder pads, with her torso bearing a light pink and purplish pink star symbol on it, and her pants were two different colors: deep blue and deep maroonish pink, split in half, showing off her large hips.

"Do you really think we should tell Steven more about the war, Garnet?" Pearl asked, her voice peppered with worry. "I mean, he's still so young."

"Steven's stronger than you give him credit for," Garnet replied in a soft, yet somewhat insouciant voice. There was still a twinge of warmth in there, though. "We can't hide these things from him."

"Yooooooo!" Amethyst's husky voice echoed across the ocean breeze. Garnet and Pearl turned in the direction that led to the Big Donut, watching as a purple dot ran right toward them. "Garnet! Pearl! Look what I gooooot!"

"Amethyst, please!" Steven cried as he and Connie gave chase, their legs burning from all the running they had to do just to keep up with her.

Pearl and Garnet found themselves dumbfounded, wondering just what was going on. Then they saw that Amethyst was holding something. At first, it looked like a large pipe covered in purple and black thorns. Their expectations were proven wrong upon seeing a pair of sandals, feet, eyes, and grey hair. The mass that Amethyst was excitedly carrying over to them looked almost...Gem-like.

"Check it oooooout!" Amethyst cried as she slammed the hapless grey Gem down on the sand like he was a sandbag. Howlite kept his mouth shut, too stunned to say anything. "I just owned one of Peridot's lackeys! Am I awesome or what?!" She boasted like she had won the lottery.

"He's not with Peridot!" Steven interrupted, miffed that the purple Gem wasn't listening to a thing he and Connie said.

Amethyst expected Pearl and Garnet to exalt her to high heaven. She had caught one of Peridot's lackeys, and didn't mess up for once! She thought she could see smiles and glee on their faces. However, instead there was...surprise. Pearl's hands covered her mouth, and not even Garnet could prevent the ungraceful dropping of her jaw. Both of them stared at the helpless grey Gem in surprised awe.

Namely, the gem on his ankle.

"P-P-P-Pearl!" Howlite choked out, flinging himself upward to try and stand up, but the whips coiling around his body prevented all movement. "G-G-Garnet!"

The two kids exchanged confused glances. Just what was going on?

"...Howlite?!" Both tall Gems yelped in perfect unison.

Now Amethyst was confused. "Uhhh...dude, what's-"

"Amethyst!" Pearl suddenly exclaimed in an authoritative voice, like a parent scolding a naughty child. The purple gem warrior had always been on the receiving end of Pearl's scoldings. Oddly enough, Pearl didn't sound angry. Her voice went up an octave, and there was a twinge of desperation in it. "Release him right this instant!"

"Why?"

"Steven is right," Garnet interjected. "He's not with Peridot."

Steven exhaled a sigh of relief, as did Connie. Good, they seemed to understand. But how? Amethyst rolled her eyes. "Fine," With that, the pudgy purple gem released the grey Gem from her whips, which disappeared as soon as they plopped on the sand.

Although his body felt squished and tight from being trapped in the whips, a smile split his face, showing intense relief. Much to Steven and Connie's surprise, waterfalls of tears were pouring out from both Howlite and Pearl's eyes. Garnet was smiling so big, her pearly white teeth were on full display for all of Beach City to see.

"Pearl!"

"Howlite!"

The grey gem threw himself right on top of Pearl, his skinny arms wrapping around her like a vicegrip. The two of them fell into laughing fits. Even Garnet joined in on the group hug, holding them close in both arms as Howlite's tears left dark smudges on her torso. Once again, Steven, Connie, and Amethyst were at a loss for words. Did they...know Howlite? They certainly talked as though they did. Garnet took Howlite into her arms and spun him around in the air like she was a mother playing airplane with her child, with the small grey Gem smiling and laughing like he had never done before.

Happiness was swirling all around them, like the oceans of Beach City had brought them together for a warm, sweet moment. There were still a myriad of unanswered questions running through their minds. Finally, Steven broke the ice. "Pearl. Garnet. Do you... _know_ Howlite?"

"Oh my goodness, Howlite!" Pearl hugged him once more when Garnet put him down. "We thought you were dead or broken somewhere! Oh, this is a miracle!" The joy in Pearl's voice was bubbling all the way into her whole being. She wound up shaking her hands up and down at one point, not that anyone seemed to mind.

Once again, they were speechless. But Pearl's conversation with Howlite seemed to confirm it. They did know each other. Amethyst broke the ice once more. "Uhhh...are we missing something here?" She asked. "Who is this Gem anyway?"

Finally, Pearl and Garnet calmed down enough to give an explanation. "Oh, that's right! You weren't there!" Pearl began excitedly, her aqua green eyes, almost bordering on greenish turquoise, brimming with unbridled joy. "Howlite was one of many Crystal Gem allies that Rose, Garnet, and I recruited to defend Earth from Homeworld back in the day!"

Everyone's eyes widened in realization. They looked as though Pearl had lobsters crawling out of her ears. Howlite was one of Rose Quartz's allies? He fought in the Gem War alongside Pearl, Garnet, and possibly others? They had no idea. Howlite's cheeks turned a dark grey, embarrassed by Pearl's exaltion of him.

"Really?! I didn't know you knew my mom and the Gems!" Steven explained, his eyes sparkling like stars.

"I…" Howlite stammered, looking at the sand beneath his feet, averting everyone's gaze. "I...I saw a...picture of...Rose Quartz on your wall," He explained shyly. "I didn't believe it at first...but then I saw Pearl," He remembered that Pearl had come by to check on Steven, and the latter made him hide, thinking they didn't know him. "I had no idea...you were even still alive."

"Whoa! Why didn't you guys tell me about any of this?!" Amethyst yelled, balling her fists. Connie backed away a little, but Steven could tell the purple Gem wasn't angry. Just surprised, and probably curious for answers.

"We wanted to put the Gem War behind us," Garnet explained calmly, stroking Howlite's head with her large yet comforting hand. Connie could see that Howlite smiled sweetly, basking in the large Gem's touch. "We thought that he had perished, along with our other allies. Talking about them wouldn't change anything, nor would anything come out of it."

"Hey!" Steven raised his arms out, as though he wanted a hug. "One of your allies is alive and well!"

Connie's eyes sparkled like diamonds. "You should totally tell us all about your adventures!"

"Yeah!" Amethyst interjected, smiling like she was a tiger about to eat her prey. "Come on! Don't leave me outta the loop!" She held a hand out toward Howlite. "Oh, nice to meet'cha, dude!"

Like with Steven, Howlite simply hid behind Pearl. "Awww, come on! We should totally hang out!" Amethyst complained, putting her hands on her hips.

"Amethyst," Pearl held a hand out, which signaled that the purple Gem needed to back off a little. "Howlite's rather timid, so don't try to get in his personal space," She advised. Suddenly, Howlite's skinny grey arms coiled around her as the grey Gem buried his face onto her shoulder.

Wet tears dripped onto her shoulder. Soft sobbing sounds came out from the gem's eyes. Everyone found themselves speechless. Was Howlite crying? All Pearl did was put her hand on one of Howlite's, hopefully to reassure him that everything was alright. But the Gem could also sense...relief. She had to wonder how long Howlite had survived on this world without her, Garnet, and Rose.

* * *

Once Howlite calmed down, the Crystal Gems told Steven, Connie, and Amethyst more about Howlite, while telling the grey Gem about what's happened after he supposedly "perished." Joy had completely wrapped itself around the grey Gem. First he was on a new world, welcomed by new friends, and now he was reunited with his friends. For a moment, he thought he was dreaming, but the warm heat from the flames crackling in the fireplace told him that this was no dream. This was real.

His emotions were awhirl. Awhirl with nothing but absolute joy. Garnet and Pearl were here, and here they were, chatting with him, telling him about Steven, Beach City, and everything that's happened over the past few millennium. Just like old times. Beach City's ocean had been bathed in liquid orange by the time they finished, as the sun crossed over to another part of the world, letting the moon bring forth the night. Howlite felt as though he were in heaven. Finally, after so long, Garnet and Pearl were here again, especially Pearl.

"Whoa…" That was all Connie had to say.

"All of that really happened?" Steven asked, clutching his feet with his hands, eager to know more.

"So what happened to Howlite after that?" Amethyst asked. "Yo, Howlite!" She called in his direction. He sat on the couch next to Pearl, still clutching the fabric Greg generously gave him. "How'd you come to Earth anyway?"

"I remember you were kidnapped by a member of Yellow Diamond's court," Pearl interrupted. "Golden Beryl, was it?"

Howlite averted her gaze, looking down at the fabric in his hands. It was soft yet somewhat hollow, like it had holes in it that needed to be filled. "She...held me prisoner in her spaceship," Howlite began, his voice low, but still audible enough for everyone to hear. "I fought her off and...found an escape pod. I didn't know I was heading to Earth. When I got out, I just kept running and running."

Familiar sights and sounds returned. The burning hot sand seeping through his sandals. His slender legs screaming for him to stop running even after he seemed too tired to go on. The harsh wind blowing dust into his face. An image of a dark yellow hand attempting to grab him. A sharp object collided with his gem.

"...Before I knew it, my Gem was broken," Howlite finished. "I guess I just...stayed there. For all that time."

The memory of finding the broken rock was strong in Steven's mind. It had happened recently, so that was par for the course. Still, with the way Howlite kept looking away from everyone, the boy couldn't help but wonder if there was more that he wasn't telling them. But he didn't want to press the issue. Howlite had just reunited with the Gems. He felt he deserved to spend time with them spending whole millenia separated, thinking he had perished or was broken into pieces.

"Steven…" Pearl suddenly interjected. Steven could see the worry on her face. "How come you didn't tell us about Howlite when you first found him?"

Steven frowned, looking down at his sandals. "I was afraid you'd think he was an enemy or one of Peridot's group," Amethyst made a face before turning to look at the fireplace. "And after what happened with Lapis…"

"Please don't be mad," Connie reasoned. "He didn't want you to worry, that's all. He wanted to wait before introducing him to you. Of course," She crossed her arms. "As it turns out you already know him, so that's kinda moot at this point."

With a soft, kind smile, Pearl put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Oh, Steven...we wouldn't have gotten mad," Pearl told him in a low, gentle voice befitting of a mother. For a moment, Steven thought her voice sounded like Rose's from the video tape. "Howlite's one of our best friends. We're extremely happy to know that he's been alive all this time, and we have you to thank for giving him back to us."

Steven smiled again. Howlite followed suit. He had no idea Pearl thought so highly of him. The way she talked to Steven just exuded unbridled kindness and love. The grey Gem's heart began to pound within his chest.

Unfortunately, a rumbling sound that shook the entire house pushed away the warm, happy atmosphere. Connie was quick to clutch part of the couch to keep herself from falling. Amethyst wasn't so lucky, as she rolled right in front of Howlite like she was a stuffed animal knocked off of a shelf. Pearl was quick to trap Steven in a tight hug, and Howlite clung to Garnet as she stood up, her fists generating thick red gauntlets with yellow stars on them.

"What was that?!" Connie yelped, pushing her glasses back on her face. "Is it a Gem monster?"

Amethyst was quick to pull a whip from the gem on her chest. "Only one way to find out!"

The Crystal Gems-Steven, Connie, and Howlite included-raced out to the beach, wondering what caused that small earthquake. The ragtag group stopped in their tracks, looking right up at the new night sky. A large monster towered over all of the gems, reaching as tall as the stone statue that graced the face of the cliff. Its lower body resembled that of a lion, but with dark, coal grey fur with the tip of its tail resembling a pitchfork. Its haunting white mane was transparent, as one could see right through it, and its face resembled that of a human's, but the only facial features it had were a large mouth donning a set of sharp, white tiger's teeth and a round, deep silvery grey and white gemstone embedded on where its nose should be. Its blood red claws stretched far from its paws, looking about as long as Pearl's aqua green lance.

One could easily describe this monster as a dark manticore with a jewel on its face.

Garnet was the first to take action. With a majestic leap, she readied her gauntlets, intent on punching the snot out of the dark manticore. However, with every punch she launched, the dark manticore evaded every attack just by either doing a backflip or hopping in the opposite direction. Pearl threw two lances at the manticore, and although they managed to pierce its fur, it wasn't enough to make its physical form disappear. Amethyst wrapped two whips around one of its legs in an attempt to make it trip. However, the manticore lifted its paw up and threw the purple gem toward the cliff.

"Amethyst!" Both Steven and Connie cried as they saw their friend fly into a rock face. Howlite crawled back into the same spot where he hid when he first met the two kids. Wracked with fear, he curled into a ball and hid, his small body trembling.

The dark manticore swiped at Pearl, who elegantly did a backflip before jumping in the air and slashing the beast's face with her sword. It wasn't enough to break through its furry hide, but the manticore let out a pained yelp.

The pearl on her head glowed in a white light as she stuck her hand inside it and pulled out a small sword. "Connie! Use this for now!" Pearl threw the sword at Connie, who grabbed it without a sinch. She and Steven exchanged glances before nodding.

Howlite grew more fearful as he saw the kids charge at the manticore. _'What?! Are they really going to fight that thing?! They'll die!'_ He screamed. He wanted to tell them to come back and let the other Gems handle it. No sound came out from his throat, nor would his body move on his command. His legs trembled, freezing in place, refusing to move. Even lifting his arms up made him feel as though he was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.

How could two small humans fight a gem manticore? Connie managed to leap on top of the manticore's back and slash part of its mane. Translucent white hairs floated down to its paws as the manticore attempted to swipe at her, but the girl was quick to leap right off. The manticore gave chase and tried to slash her again, only for Steven to produce a round, glimmering pink shield with rose and thorn patterns, holding it off. Garnet took the chance to bash its head with both of her heavy gauntlets, not that it did much.

"Man, this thing's tough as nails!" Amethyst growled as she rolled toward it like an armadillo. She charged at the manticore with all her might, ramming into its abdomen. She managed to made it skid across the sand, but it wasn't enough to defeat it.

"Be careful! It's strong!" Garnet edicted, holding off one of its claws.

"Right!" Steven and Connie said in perfect unison.

All of a sudden, the dark manticore gained the upper hand. Using both paws, it lifted Garnet into the air and threw her into the ocean like she was a stone. "Garnet!" Everyone cried. Pearl held it off with her lance, but eventually, the manticore unleashed a piercing roar that emitted strange, grey sound waves. Steven and Connie's hands flew to their ears, unable to handle the screeching sound waves. Pearl found herself blown away, rolling on the sand.

"Pearl!" Howlite finally found his voice.

"Revenge!" Steven cried valiantly like a gladiator on a battlefield, raising his shield in the air.

"Revenge!" Connie did the same, only she held her sword up. The two of them charged at the manticore, weapons out and ready, screaming like warriors.

"Steven! Connie! No!" Howlite cried, extending his hand out. But they didn't hear him. Steven threw his shield at the manticore like a flying disc, hitting it right on the nose. While it was reeling from the pain, Connie managed to climb on its mane and reach his face, her sword ready to stab it. However, the manticore recovered quickly and swatted the girl off with a swipe of his paw.

"I got'cha!" Amethyst opened her arms out as Connie fell right on top of her. The weight of the fall caused the two of them to roll on the sand. Steven stood before them, encasing his friends in a rose pink bubble. The dark manticore used its claws to scratch at the bubble, letting out hungry howls.

"What are we going to do?!" Connie yelped.

"I don't know!" Steven exclaimed, his arms shaking.

"Well, I ain't givin' up here!" Amethyst yelled, still holding the girl in her arms.

Howlite found himself frozen. Garnet was in the ocean, Pearl was lying on a pile of rocks, and Steven, Connie, and Amethyst were in a pink bubble that's bound to pop if Steven used enough energy. Watching them fight...it was like Homeworld all over again. What could he do? His body refused to move, and even though he wished he could jump in there, memories flooded his mind. If his friends were to die here...he didn't know what he would do.

Someone had to do something. Someone had to help them. But how?

That was when it hit him. He wasn't on Homeworld anymore. No one could tell him what to do. His friends were in danger. He could save them without consequence. That was it. Finally, Howlite's body listened as he stood up on two feet. He couldn't let his friends die here. Not after he finally reunited with Garnet and Pearl after so long. Not after meeting Steven and Connie.

No more sitting around and crying. It was time to take action.

Before he knew it, Howlite found himself charging right at the manticore, shouting, "LEAVE THEM ALONE!" in the highest, most intimidating voice he could muster. The gem on his ankle glowed in a brilliant white light as he pulled it out, split the light into two, and out came two large windmill shuriken. The large shuriken were grey in color, just like his skin, and looked too heavy for him to carry. But to him, they were light as a feather.

The manticore roared at him, hoping to scare him off. But a flame of courage blazed from within Howlite. Nobody was going to hurt his friends! Not on his watch! With his eyes blazing with determination, Howlite threw both of his windmill shuriken. They came so fast, the dark manticore wasn't able to dodge them in time. The manticore found itself pinned to a rock face. Howlite took the chance to charge at the helpless manticore.

"You will not hurt my friends!" With that, Howlite pulled out one of the windmill shuriken from its tail and shoved it in his face. With a pained roar, the manticore disappeared into a cloud of dust. The round gem on its face fell on the sand.

The rose pink bubble vanished. Steven and Connie raced over to Howlite, their eyes gleaming, as Amethyst went to get Garnet out from the water. Pearl helped herself up, using her lance to keep her upright like it was a cane.

"I'll bubble it!" Steven interjected as he stood before Howlite, forming a bubble around the cat's eye gem. Just like that, it disappeared. Howlite pulled the windmill shuriken off of the rock face. "Howlite, that was awesome!" Steven's eyes sparkled like stars.

"You really showed that manticore!" Connie exclaimed.

Howlite's cheeks turned grey. "I...I'm sorry I couldn't help earlier," He scratched his hair with one hand, averting their gaze. "I...don't like fighting."

With a serene smile, Garnet put a hand on his shoulder. "It's alright. You did great. Thanks."

Amethyst interrupted the conversation with a laugh. "Yeah, and to think I thought you were a spineless wimp!"

"Amethyst!" Pearl scolded. How could she talk to Howlite like that? Nobody else seemed offended, though. Howlite didn't bat an eyelash, as he was staring at Pearl. Connie looked up, seeing the yearning expression on his face. She was sure she could see hearts fluttering around him. He kept staring at Pearl with a...lovestruck expression.

Her vibrating cell phone pulled her out of her reverie. It was a text from her mother. "Aww man. I gotta get going," Connie said.

"That's okay! We can hang out again tomorrow!" Steven exclaimed. "Here's hoping a random gem monster doesn't try to kill us in the meantime."

Connie nodded before darting off into the distance, disappearing as she turned the corner. Howlite didn't even see her depart. He just continued to stare at Pearl as she scolded Amethyst for making that remark.

"Pearl…" He whispered to himself, making his voice so low it was almost inaudible to everyone else.

* * *

 **Yeah...sorry for the sudden hiatus. Writer's block, college, graduation, life, job hunting, family, and my Pokemon fan fic taking priority. But I finally got my inspiration back, so expect new chapters in the near future! For those wondering, the story takes place BEFORE the episode Cry For Help so as to prevent confusion for future chapters. But the episode The Answer torpedoed some ideas I had for later on, so I'm making some changes. Look forward to new chapters! Nine more to go!**

 **And sorry for the sucky fight scene. I stink at fight scenes.**

 **But there is another reason I'm working on this fic again. I recently heard about the whole Zamii debacle where certain people (Not the entire SU fandom. Just one group of people in particular) kept harassing her to the point where she attempted suicide. That kind of behavior is absolutely disgusting, and I honestly have no idea why anyone would take their dislike of someone's art as far as that. If you don't like someone or their work, just walk away and go about your life! It's that easy! There's no need to make your dislike of something and turn it into a huge spectacle and outright attack someone for their work and make up slanderous lies about them, whether it offends you or not! There is absolutely no excuse for driving someone to suicide. No one, ABSOLUTELY NO ONE, deserves to be treated in such a manner, especially over something as trivial as someone's artwork or stories or creations. How would you like it if someone else tried to do that with you? You wouldn't like that, now would you? I didn't think so.**


	4. Soulful Gem

Mythos 4: Soulful Gem

Howlite sat in a corner of Steven's room, holding the fabric Greg gave him in his hands. It had been a week since he miraculously reunited with Pearl and Garnet. Currently, he was alone, as Steven and the Crystal Gems embarked on a mission, and Howlite decided to stay at the beach house. The timid grey Gem was not one for fighting, only doing so when absolutely necessary, but always preferred not to.

There was just something about this beach house that overwhelmed Howlite's senses with an unfamiliar rush of inexplicable, indescribable warmth and calm. The warm sun's rays came through the glass windows, lighting it right up. He could see the entire ocean just from Steven's window, watching as the mass of water that stretched toward the horizon went from a pool of liquid amber to a dazzling sapphire blue. Was this what Steven saw every day? Nothing but blue sky, calm oceans, and merry seagulls soaring across the wind? Howlite couldn't help but assume Steven had lived quite a happy life, with the Crystal Gems having raised him.

All of Earth's wonders were so entrancing to the grey gem. The saltwater waves bouncing up and down in a bubbly orchestra, the tiny white flora-daisies, as Connie called them-springing up from what little soil Beach City had, whispering the stories they lived to tell across the summer wind, the sun's multiple limbs stretching out, wrapping themselves around everything in a motherly embrace...everything was just overflowing with warmth and rapture. There was no way Homeworld could appreciate such beauty.

Even the fabric in his hands felt warm under his touch. He had picked them out because they were Cookie Cat's colors. But what could he use it for? The creaking sound of the door opening made Howlite stand up. Looking down from Steven's bed, it was just Greg, in his usual attire, holding a small white box in his hands.

"Hey there, Howlite!" As usual, Greg's husky yet kind voice greeted the grey gem warmly. "I thought since you were here all by yourself, you'd like some company!"

"Thanks, Greg," Howlite came down the stairs, clutching the fabric in his hands as though it was a security blanket. "What's that?"

"Oh, this?" Greg opened the box. It contained a variety of materials that Howlite had not seen before. But Greg knew exactly what they were: scissors, balls of snow white cotton, a pile of colorful buttons, sewing thread, yarn, a pack of Alamo's glue, and silver safety pins. "This is just a sewing kit I got at a yard sale. I never really got to use it much, though," Greg explained, sitting down on the couch.

"Can you...make stuff with all of this?" Howlite took a thread of yarn into his hands, holding it close to his face to examine it.

"Rose was a natural at it," Greg told him, scratching his beard. "I've seen her make lots of things. Like…" He walked up the stairs, picked something up, and came right back down. It was a brown teddy bear plush doll, wearing a black tuxedo, a red bow tie, and a monocle over its left eye. "She made Sir Bearington here before Steven was born."

Howlite raised an eyebrow, giving the man a quizzical look.

"This is called a stuffed animal," Greg explained. "It's just a fluffy thing kids like to cuddle and hug. Here," He handed Sir Bearington to Howlite.

The grey gem examined Sir Bearington closely. Upon further rumination, it was just a bear shaped combination of fabric, cotton, and clothing. But he could see some tiny holes in the bear's fur, with peeks of white stuffing about to pop right out. One of Sir Bearington's button eyes drooped a little, almost bordering on falling off. All of this told him that even if this bear was just...a fake stuffed animal, he could feel Steven's love all over it.

A stuffed animal...Cookie Cat flashed through his mind. "C-C-Can I use this kit?" Howlite stammered.

"Sure. How come?"

"I…" Howlite looked down at Sir Bearington, averting Greg's gaze. "You all have been so...nice to me since...I've been here. Steven and Connie, especially. I...I want…" Greg waited patiently, allowing Howlite time to construct his sentences on his own. "...to thank them in some way. I think maybe...this is how I...want to do it."

Greg smiled. "I only have enough for two, but you can use it," He put a firm hand on the grey gem's shoulder. "I'm sure Steven and Connie will love what you make for them," Howlite's cheeks turned grey again. "But are you sure you're gonna be able to do it? I mean, sewing's no easy task. I've tried it myself and I almost lost all blood flow in my fingers."

Much to Greg's surprise, Howlite was already rummaging through the sewing kit. It seemed as though the grey gem's body was moving all on its own. His grey eyes examined everything closely. The fabric, the cotton, and the rest of the materials. He ran up to Steven's room to get a picture of Cookie Cat before coming back down. Before long, he was already pushing a needle through the dark brown fabric. Loop after loop, thread after thread, Howlite kept his eyes focused solely on the task before him. Greg smiled.

"I'm gonna make some toast. Would you like some chocolate milk, too?" Greg asked.

"Yes, please," Howlite replied.

The grey gem was hard at work, sitting on that tiny couch by the fireplace, sewing and making the fabric in his hand take shape. Howlite had no idea how much time had passed, but by the time the Crystal Gems had come back from their mission, the sun was far above the ocean. Howlite stashed what he finished behind the couch, but kept the sewing kit out.

"Hey, Howlite!" Steven was quick to run right up to the grey gem. "I haven't shown you around Beach City yet, have I? Would you like to go outside with me?"

"Uhh...sure," Howlite replied sheepishly.

Steven held his pudgy hand out, hoping Howlite would return the gesture. This time, Howlite didn't hesitate. With a smile, he took Steven's hand, and let the boy escort him out the door. Greg and Garnet watched, all smiles.

"Steven really seems to like Howlite, doesn't he?" Greg said.

"It's the other way around," Garnet interjected calmly. "Howlite usually doesn't warm up to others so easily," Although she kept a cool expression, inside, she was smiling like a loon. Her insides were doing backflips. _'Howlite...you're back to your old self. I couldn't be happier.'_

* * *

"As you know, that's the car wash, where my dad works," Steven explained, pointing to It's a Wash. Howlite watched everything around him, marveling in how vast everything was. "And over there is my favorite place to go: The Big Donut!"

The Big Donut-the place in question-was just a small store that didn't look bigger than the beach house. It was a building with muted violet brown walls, with an awning hanging over it that had pink and bluish brown stripes. Said awning read _'Big Donut,'_ in white, and a large, brown donut statue with pink and blue sprinkles on it stood on top of the roof. Standing in front of the Big Donut was Connie, wearing a red dress and a white sun hat.

"Connie!"

"Hey guys! You're here!" Connie greeted them both with hugs. "I figured you'd be out and about."

"I'm showing Howlite around town," Steven explained. "Hey, Howlite! Have you ever had a donut before?"

"What's a donut?" Howlite asked.

"I'll show you! They're super good!" Steven gently escorted the grey gem into the small establishment, with Connie following suit, keeping close.

The first person they saw upon entering Big Donut was a college aged woman with a lot of pudge to her, with poofy blonde hair going down to her shoulders. She and another man were wearing the same T-shirt, a purple one with the Big Donut logo on it. The woman was behind the counter, whereas a boorish, lanky man was sitting at a table, scrolling through a black Ipod. The boy had tan skin, a tuft of orange hair standing atop his head like whip cream on a sundae, and underneath his purple T-shirt was a long sleeved white one, along with tattered black jeans, and large green sneakers.

"Hi Sadie! Hi Lars!" Steven greeted them with a big smile and a wave.

"Oh! Hey, Steven," The woman, Sadie, whipped her head up to look at the familiar face she and Lars saw every day. "Here for the usual?"

"Yes, please! By the way, this is my new friend Howlite!" Steven directed Sadie toward the grey gem next to him. Like usual, he looked away.

"Nice to meet you," Sadie greeted him.

"L-L-L-Likewise," Howlite stammered.

"There's lots of different donuts here," Steven told him. "Pick one! They're really good!"

"Hey, Lars! Put in some croissants!" Sadie called over from the counter.

Lars let out a groan and dragged himself over to the counter. Everyone could tell from his posture that he didn't look like he was having any fun doing this job at all. He put some croissants on the display as Howlite stared at some star shaped donuts with chocolate frosting on them.

"...Can I have this one?" Howlite pointed to the star shaped donut.

"Oh! I want one with those pink sprinkles!" Connie exclaimed, pointing to one that had star shaped sprinkles dotting its surface.

"Sure!" Steven wasted no time paying for their donuts. He smacked some crumpled up dollar bills on the countertop before Sadie handed him a brown paper bag.

"Don't hold up the line, kid," Lars warned in a low, irritated voice. As soon as he laid eyes on Howlite, the grey gem backed up two steps. "Hm. You new around here? Haven't seen your mug before."

"This is Howlite! He's my new friend!" Steven said.

"Pfft!" Lars put a hand on his mouth to suppress a laugh. "What kind of weird name is Howlite?!" Immediately, he burst into laughter. Howlite stared down at his feet, his cheeks burning from embarrassment. Then again, he knew humans didn't know much about gems, so of course someone would laugh at his name, but still. Connie glared at Lars, and he got the message before suppressing his laughter.

It didn't ease Howlite's rigid posture one bit. Something about Lars just felt off to the grey Gem. But he had no way of putting it into words. Steven seemed to like him just fine, but he could tell that Lars didn't seem to share the same sentiment. Before long, Lars was standing at the front of the counter, right as Steven opened the paper bag to give Connie her donut and Howlite his.

"Hey, Sadie," Lars began, pointing at himself with his thumb. "Tonight, I'm gonna play the O-Box."

"No way!" Sadie slammed her large hands on the counter. "You played my O-Box five times in three weeks already!"

Howlite shot a quizzical look at them, watching them bicker and wave their arms around. "Do they...act like that all the time?"

"Yep," Steven replied. "They're crazy for each other."

Connie held back a giggle by putting one of her hands over her mouth. She didn't seem to notice her glasses falling down just a little bit, going past her nose.

"Alright, I say we decide this on a game of rock-paper-scissors!" Sadie edicted, holding her hand out.

"Oh, it's on!" Lars held a fist out. Before long, Sadie and Lars were shaking their fists at each other. Howlite remained at his spot in the Big Donut, hoping a fight wouldn't break out. "Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!" They held two fists out. They tried again. "Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!" Both their hands were flat. One more time. "Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!"

Unlike before, their hands didn't form the same shape. Sadie held her hand out in a fist, while Lars had two fingers sticking out. "Ha! Rock smashes scissors!" Sadie cheered, pushing Lars's hand down with her fist. "I win! I get to play my O-Box! Finally!"

Normally, one would accept their defeat gracefully, as it was just a simple child's game. But Lars was not exactly one to admit defeat. Instead of conceding defeat and going about his merry way, he put his hand into a fist and gently shoved Sadie with it. It wasn't anything that would result in grievous injuries. It was just the kind of shove that most college aged boys would use to express affection toward one another, only Lars glared as he struck Sadie on her upper arm.

"Ow!" Sadie yelped. "Jeez, when did you get so strong?!"

"Ha! I've been workin' out!" Lars let out a merry laugh.

The kids laughed as well, having fun watching the two employees bicker. Everyone seemed to be laughing...except for Howlite. Instead of joining in on their fun, Howlite just sat there, his grey eyes having grown huge, like he had seen the most horrifying thing in his entire life. Sheer terror seized him, gluing him to the chair he sat on. He heard nothing but Lars's laughter. It almost sounded maniacal to him. An image of a lady in gold flashed through his mind, and a silhouette of a large hand almost seized him.

His heart stopped for a moment. Fear had completely seized him. Lars' laughter did absolutely nothing to ameliorate it. A flash of a woman with blonde hair hovered over Lars in his mind. Soon, the fear that seized him had suddenly transformed into blazing hot anger. How dare this kid hit his friend like that? His eyebrows furrowed and he clenched his teeth, his normally soft, gentle face becoming contorted in a way that even he wasn't used to.

What made him even angrier was that...everyone was laughing. Even Steven and Connie, his beloved friends. Why would they laugh at someone getting hurt? His mind tried to tell him that this wasn't Homeworld, that she wasn't here anymore. But his body refused to listen. Much to everyone's shock, Howlite suddenly grabbed Lars by the arm and slammed him into the wall. Nobody saw this coming. All Steven, Connie, and Sadie did was freeze, with their jaws dropping wide open. The first thing Lars saw upon opening his eyes was Howlite.

A very angry Howlite.

"What the…?" Steven finally choked out.

"...You had no right to hit her," Howlite growled in a low yet indignant voice. It didn't sound as though it belonged to him. Connie and Steven exchanged confused glances. Just what was going on? The grey Gem's fingers kneaded a piece of Lars' shirt, almost lifting him up into the air. "...How could you do that to someone?! Is this what you do everyday?! Do you get off on hurting others weaker than yourself?! Huh?!" Howlite shouted, louder this time. His normally soft voice became hoarse, with the strength of a bomb.

"Get off me!" Lars protested, throwing his arms on Howlite in a futile attempt to push him off, to no avail.

"How would you like it if somebody did the same thing to you?!" Howlite screamed, his voice way past volatile and hysterical. In his anger, he pushed Lars farther into the wall. "You wouldn't like that, now would you?!"

"Howlite!" Steven and Connie finally found movement in their bodies and flung their arms around Howlite, pulling him off of Lars. The boorish teenager slumped to the floor, gasping for air. Sadie ran over to help him up, standing in front of him in case Howlite tried to throw himself on him again.

"My God! Your friend's a psycho!" Lars yelled indignantly, not helping the situation any.

"At least I don't hurt women or beat them with my fists, unlike you!" Howlite argued.

"Stop!" Connie pleaded. "He didn't hurt Sadie! They were just playing and messing around!"

"Don't hurt him! You'll get in trouble!" Steven pleaded alongside his bespectacled friend. As much as he liked Sadie and Lars, he knew the latter didn't always have tact. Or self-restraint. But Steven knew Lars was a good person at heart. The whole situation threw his emotions awhirl. But he knew a customer assaulting an employee could result in imprisonment. No way was he going to let Howlite get himself thrown in jail. With a nod from Connie, the two kids gently escorted Howlite out of the Big Donut. "Sorry!" He cried to Sadie and Lars.

Once they got Howlite outside the Big Donut, they felt it safe to release him from their grasp. Howlite was still angry, his shoulders hunching up and down, his gentle hands balled into fists that were ready for punching, his eyes still wide and blazing with rage. Steven and Connie found themselves flummoxed, their minds rattled with disbelief, and they knew that some answers were in order.

"Howlite? What's wrong?" Steven asked, his voice dropping to a sad tone. "This isn't like you."

"Didn't you see him hit her?!" Howlite screamed, pointing to the Big Donut. Unbeknownst to them, Lars and Sadie stood at the entrance, watching and listening. "He assaulted her like she was a punching bag!"

The pieces came together in their heads. Howlite thought Lars was hurting Sadie maliciously. Time to clear things up. "He wasn't hitting her," Connie clarified. "It was just play violence," She explained further. "They do this all the time. They were just messing around."

"Lars can be a bit of a jerk sometimes, I won't lie about that," Steven interrupted, putting in his two cents. "But I'm sure he'd never actually hurt Sadie or put her in danger-"

Unfortunately for them, none of their explanations seemed to ameliorate Howlite's boiling anger. In fact, Howlite snapped back at them with more force, cutting them off with more yelling. "Why are you justifying what he did?!" He howled, his face contorting into something unrecognizable. Steven was sure he could see the veins in his scrawny neck bulge.

The two kids didn't have an answer for him. All they could do was stare back at him with disbelief. "I...I...I…" Howlite stammered, shaking his fists up and down, struggling to come up with something else to say.

"Howlite, please," Steven begged softly, raising his hands. "Why do you think Lars is hurting Sadie? He's...not like that," He knew saying this wouldn't calm the indignant gem one bit, but he had to convince him somehow.

"I know what it's like!" Howlite roared, his voice hoarse from all the yelling. Finally, he stopped, taking in rapid breaths. His throat felt like dried up sandpaper with every breath he took. At this point, tears came flowing out. His eyebrows faced up toward his hair. Steven and Connie continued to stare, even as he fell to his knees like he lost all feeling in his body. Soon, sobs were escaping from the grey gem.

Steven could only watch as the gem failed to hold back tears and quivering sobs. Howlite pushed the tears away with his fists, but they kept coming. Seeing Howlite almost assault Lars, having to pull him back, hearing all those things...all of it said all he needed to know. Something must have happened to him in the past, possibly on Homeworld, to make him think even simple play-fighting was the same as physical abuse.

" _Why won't you let me do this for you, Rose?!"_ That was something Pearl had said to him one day. Howlite looked exactly the same as Pearl did when she said that. Here he was, a sad, sobbing mess of a gem. Steven had no idea what to do. But all he could do was gently put a hand on Howlite's shoulder, hoping it'd reassure him somewhat. He didn't tell Howlite to stop crying, figuring it'd be better for him to just let it all out. Connie remained silent, folding her hands, also looking unsure.

"Do you...want to go back home?" Steven asked in the gentlest voice he thought he had. "We can eat the donuts we bought."

"I'm sorry…" That was the only answer Howlite could give the kids. He sobbed so much, he could barely put two words together. "I'm sorry…"

Connie looked up, seeing that Sadie was approaching them with a paper bag in her hands. "Is Lars okay?" She asked worriedly.

"He's fine. Don't worry," Sadie told her before handing the paper bag to her. "You forgot your donuts," The blonde girl turned to Howlite, who continued to sob and apologize. She could tell his remorse was genuine. "Is he going to be okay?"

"I hope so," Steven told her. "This is the first time he's ever done this. Again, we're sorry."

"I should have him arrested for assault!" Lars bellowed from the entrance. The kids managed to make Howlite stand up, gently escorting him away from the Big Donut. They didn't need any more trouble, and they certainly didn't want Howlite to get arrested, even if Lars was right in that the grey gem did assault a store employee, which everyone knows is wrong.

Thankfully, the kids and Howlite made it back to the house without incident. As soon as Howlite went through the entrance, he plopped down on the couch and started sewing. Not once did he take his eyes off of his work. Greg came out from the bathroom, scratching his hair.

"Hey, kids!" He greeted them with a smile. It faded as soon as he saw the despondent looks on their faces. "What's the matter? Did something happen?"

Steven allowed Connie the chance to explain everything in detail. The more Greg heard, the bigger his eyes became. But the scruffy man tried to keep his cool, knowing that screaming about it wouldn't do anyone any good. "I see. I'm glad Lars is okay and Howlite didn't completely wail on him," Steven could see the worried look on his face.

All of a sudden, Greg sat down next to the grey gem, who continued to focus completely on his sewing. "You doing okay, buddy?" Greg asked. Howlite shook his head left and right. "Listen, I won't ask about what happened or what started it. You probably had your reasons for...doing what you did. You probably didn't mean it," He kept his voice low and sympathetic, taking care not to push any buttons or instigate anything. A tear trickled down Howlite's cheek. "But I'm not gonna lie, if you attempt to hurt someone like that, the police could take you to jail. Assaulting an employee is considered a crime."

"A crime…?" Howlite's voice was like a pained whisper. His entire body shivered for just a moment. He knew what crimes were. All of a sudden, images of a closed space keeping him inside flashed through his mind. He found himself stuck, unable to move or breathe. There was no space, no windows to the outside world, nothing of the like. A golden silhouette appeared in his mind for just a moment.

"I'm not trying to scare you," Greg kept his distance, staying out of the gem's personal space. "I just want to make sure nothing happens to you. I know you're a good Gem. Just...try not to do that again, okay?"

Howlite nodded, and that was all Greg needed. With that, everyone left the grey gem alone, figuring he needed his space.

The grey gem continued to sew, like it was the only thing in the world that he could do. Long after Greg had left and Steven had gone to bed, he had finally finished what he was making. "Finally, it's done," He mused, holding up his creation. Another one sat right next to him. In the dead of night, Howlite walked up the stairs leading to Steven's room, gently placing his creation at the foot of Steven's bed, keeping the other one in his hand. With that, Howlite returned to the couch, his eyes growing heavy as he drifted off to sleep.

Unbeknownst to them, the warp pad suddenly emitted a beam of blue light. When it dissipated, a figure resembling a Gem materialized onto the warp pad. A young man looking to be in his late twenties stepped off of the warp pad, with a head of deep red hair in a round bowl cut. His right eye was red, with the other one being covered with a black eye patch with a red hexagon on it. His crimson red skin contrasted with his all black attire, which appeared to be a full body suit with orange and red stripes going across it diagonally, red boots, and a circle shaped machine dangling from a string around his waist.

Immediately, his crimson eye shifted toward Howlite, who slept like a log, with his body sprawled out all over the couch. The red gem didn't change his expression. He plucked the machine off of the string around his waist, opened it, and held it up to his mouth.

"Golden Beryl. This is Carnelian. Do you read me?" The crimson gem, Carnelian, whispered in a low, insouciant voice. "It took a few thousand years, but I finally found that Howlite gem you've been looking for."

He stepped back onto the warp pad, allowing the beam of light to take him away.

* * *

Since Steven slept right next to big windows, it was easy for the morning light to force him awake. No big deal. Today was a new day, and as weary as he was, Steven figured he could have another fun day today. But it started off in a way he had never expected. The moment he woke up, he saw something sitting on the foot of his bed. Something pink and dark brown. He rubbed his eyes with his fists, forcing the sleepiness to go away. Finally, once his vision cleared, he could make out what was on his bed.

"Whoa!" Stars appeared in Steven's eyes. "No way!"

Sitting at the foot of Steven's bed was what appeared to be a Cookie Cat plush doll. Steven smiled so big, his cheeks immediately started hurting. He crawled out from his comforter and picked it up. Brown head, pink and yellow eyes, pink space suit complete with the red jewel...it was the perfect image of Cookie Cat in plush doll form.

"A Cookie Cat doll?! Wow!" He hugged it tight, relishing in its softness.

"Do you...like it?" A familiar, gentle voice made Steven turn toward the stairs. There stood Howlite, staring at another Cookie Cat doll in his hands rather sheepishly. "I...I made it for you."

"Wow, really?!" Steven hopped off his bed. "You really made this for me?!"

Howlite nodded. "I made one for Connie, too."

Before the grey Gem could say more, Steven threw his arms around his waist, trapping him in the hug. "I love it I love it I love it! Thanks Howlite!" The joy Steven was exuding couldn't be contained. "You're the best!"

A warm feeling completely enveloped Howlite from the toes up. The smile on Steven's face, the radiance in his starry eyes, his warm arms embracing him...never before had he felt so loved, appreciated, accepted. Tears creeped out from the corners of his eyes. Where had this boy been all his life? Howlite flashed a soft, grateful smile and wrapped his own arms around Steven, returning his hug.

"...You're welcome," He whispered.

All of a sudden, Steven yanked the Cookie Cat doll out of Howlite's arms. "I better go see Connie and give this to her! She'll love it!" Steven raced back into his room to get dressed. Howlite, satisfied with how happy Steven is, walked back downstairs to give him some space.

It was then that Pearl came out from the door to the temple. "Oh! Good morning, Howlite," Pearl greeted him warmly as he sat down on the couch.

"Hi, Pearl," Howlite waved at her sheepishly, gesturing for her to come and sit next to him. Pearl sat down, folding her hands.

"How are you liking Beach City?"

Howlite looked down at his feet. "It's wonderful. I had no idea Earth was so...vibrant and warm. It's no wonder you, Garnet, Rose, and the others wanted to protect it," A sense of pride welled up in the grey Gem's heart, as did Pearl. "There's so many wonderful things here. It's making me wish I had been born a human, not a Gem."

"I see...you were never much of a fighter," Pearl added, looking down at her own hands. "There's lots of things to see here on Earth. It's nothing like Homeworld."

A brief silence fell in between them, even though there was so much they wanted to say to each other. Finally, Pearl spoke. "I'm glad you're back with us."

"Me too. I can tell the war has ended."

Pearl's smile faded. "It wasn't easy. Most of...our other comrades were broken."

"I'm not surprised," Howlite replied. "But...I'm glad one of them wasn't you. I don't know what I'd do if you…" He let that sentence drift away.

But it made Pearl turn her head in his direction. What did he mean by that? She knew that he cared just as much about his other companions from before the war, but that last statement implied something. Did he…?

Their thoughts were interrupted when Steven screaming pulled them both off the couch.

"No! Stop! Let go of me!"

The front door was wide open, and Amethyst and Garnet both came into the house at that time. Hearing the commotion, they raced outside. Steven pried himself out of someone's hands. Someone with red hair, a striped body suit, and an eyepatch on his left eye. Pearl was the first to take the initiative, as once Steven joined the other Gems, Pearl pulled her spear out of her head, pointing it at the red haired kidnapper.

"Leave Steven alone!" Pearl roared. Garnet got her gauntlets ready and Amethyst pulled her whip out.

The red haired man smirked. "The Crystal Gems...nice to finally meet you after all those millennia…"

Steven's mouth fell open. This man was talking like he knew them. Was he a Gem from Homeworld?

"How do you know us?!" Garnet bellowed, her gauntlets ready to punch the red man into next week.

"Tch!" The red Gem snarked. "As much as I'd love to play with you, I have a mission to finally fulfill. I'll bid you goodbye for now! Tell Howlite that Carnelian is going to report his existence to Golden Beryl!" With that, Carnelian pulled out an orb. It glowed in a white light that blinded everyone, giving him a chance to disappear into a larger ball of light. Once the light dissipated, the orb Carnelian sealed himself in, probably an escape pod, flew off into the sky.

With that, Steven and the Crystal Gems, Howlite included, were left alone on the porch, aghast and confused.

"What just happened?" Amethyst asked.

"Carnelian…" Pearl murmured to herself, putting a hand on her chin. "Why does that name sound familiar? And how did he know us?"

Howlite stormed back into the house, huddling up on the couch, curling into a fetal position. Steven ran right inside, worried. The fact that Howlite did this told Steven that the grey Gem must know that Carnelian somehow.

"Howlite? What's wrong?" Steven asked gently. "Do you know that Gem?"

"H-H-He's...he's...he's…" Howlite was trembling violently, and he could barely make out two words. Finally, he blurted out, "...He's one of Golden Beryl's disciples! I knew it! She's coming after me again!" He screamed as tears burst forth.

Golden Beryl. Steven remembered Pearl mentioning her at one point. She had taken Howlite prisoner and he had escaped at one point. Was Golden Beryl whom Howlite was so afraid of? Steven wasn't sure. But Howlite's shivering and crying said it all. But coming after him again? What did he mean?

"Just when I finally found my freedom...I finally escaped, and yet…" Howlite blubbered, hiding himself further. "Why won't she leave me alone?!"


	5. Fearful Gem

Mythos 5: Fearful Gem

Howlite wasn't in the mood to explain anything to the Gems or Steven, so they decided to leave him be so he could calm down himself. Even so, Steven couldn't bring himself to leave his frightened friend all alone. Howlite was scared, frightened, downright terrified of something...or someone. This Golden Beryl person, probably a Gem from Homeworld. Just what did she do to Howlite that made him like this? What did Carnelian have to do with it? He wished he had the answers. More than that, Steven wished he could take Howlite's pain and sadness away.

Alas, Steven didn't have that power. Whatever Howlite went through, a little cheering up wasn't going to make it all go away. It wouldn't heal the scars Howlite had, scars that were probably many millennia old. No longer was he in the mood to see Connie and give her the Cookie Cat doll Howlite made for them. He decided to send Connie a text about it, so she would at least know. Maybe she'd come over and get sword fighting lessons from Pearl. With that, Steven just sat down on the couch to at least keep him company.

"Let me know if you need anything. Okay?" Steven told him reassuringly. He knew it wouldn't help, but he hoped it would let Howlite know that he was there.

The grey Gem seemed to understand and didn't protest, so Steven stayed with him. But he couldn't stay long, as Garnet and Amethyst wanted him to come with them on a mission. As reluctant as he was to leave Howlite's side, he did feel assured in that Pearl had no plans on going anywhere, and Lion was pretty good company despite being...well, a lion, so he went with them. Howlite watched as Steven, Garnet, and Amethyst were absorbed by the light of the warp pad, disappearing into parts unknown.

Even so, the feeling of dread that seized him refused to let him go. Just when he thought he had finally escaped Golden Beryl's grasp, one of her associates just had to appear. He had to wonder if he was some kind of magnet for trouble, or Gems wanting him for whatever machinations they planned for Earth. Would he ever be able to just live a peaceful, happy life without being chased by his past? What could he do? Howlite wished he knew the answers.

Just then, Lion ambled over to him, staring at him. Howlite turned to face the adorable pink lion, smiling at the large cat's comforting gesture before stroking his mane with one hand.

"I wish I wasn't such a scaredy-cat all the time…" Howlite confided as he brushed his hand against the cotton candy pink lion. Lion closed his eyes, basking in Howlite's gentle touch. "Do you ever wish you could just...disappear? Go someplace where no one can find you? So you can be free from everything?"

Lion didn't answer. Lions can't talk, so Howlite didn't expect an answer. That was alright. Lion was here, and that was okay with him. Finally, the feeling of dread vanished. Howlite stood up from the couch. Taking in a deep breath, he sang.

" _Little howling gem, the stars shine bright,_

 _As the full moon shapes itself into a gem,_

 _With the flames of courage shining from within,_

 _Howl with all your might, face your fears for them,_

 _Your comrades perished in the name of the law,_

 _You cry in the night, yearning for their gentle touch,_

 _The feeling of death haunts you day and night,_

 _Leaving you in a painful, suffocating fright._

 _The light of hope is there, within your grasp,_

 _But where is that light, you ask tearfully,_

 _It's in your heart, it's still there,_

 _Even if you can't see it, it can shine brighter than any sun."_

It was at this time that Pearl came out from her room, walking across the warp pad, stopping in her tracks as soon as she heard Howlite's soft voice. All she could do was smile as she listened to Howlite sing, watching him wave his arms, tap his feet on the wooden floor like a flamenco dancer, and sing to his heart's content. No longer was he trapped in the fetal position, frozen with fear by the knowledge of Carnelian's presence on Earth. All Lion did was curl up on the couch and close his eyes, allowing the lullaby to put him to sleep.

When Howlite finished, once again, clapping brought him back to reality. With a jerk, he turned around to find Pearl clapping her thin hands with a smile. His cheeks burned, turning a deep grey as he stood in a more rigid stance, scratching his neck. Pearl didn't mind one bit.

"It's been a long time since I've heard you sing," Pearl told him, walking closer. "You have a nice voice."

Howlite averted her gaze, staring down at his toes. "Th-Th-Thanks. But...I'm not that good. I just...wanted to pass the time…"

"Don't be so modest," Pearl said. "You should be proud of your talent," Her smile faded, and a dark expression formed. "I tried looking for information on this Carnelian character, but I haven't found anything so far."

The grey Gem continued to stare down at his feet. "All I know...is that he's with Golden Beryl. I don't know anything else," He scratched his arm with one hand, wrapping his arms around himself as if they were a force field to protect him from the world.

A gentle hand pressed on his shoulder. "You don't need to force yourself. Take all the time you need," Pearl told him reassuringly. His heart was ablaze, and his cheeks burned further. But he flashed a smile that told Pearl he was alright for now. "I'm really glad you're back with us. Steven and Connie really like you."

"They're nice kids," Howlite mused. He already found himself imagining the look on Connie's face, should she receive the Cookie Cat doll he made for her. Eyes sparkling like diamonds and a radiant smile. "I...I really like them…"

Pearl found herself looking down at the floor herself, also averting his gaze. That made it easier for Howlite to look up at her. She was just an inch taller than he was. "I wish Rose was here. She would be so happy to see you."

"I know…" He could picture Rose in his mind. A large woman donning a trailing white dress, with a head full of massive, curly, cotton candy pink hair that nothing could stand up to. Her kind eyes gazed upon him as she held a hand out. In return, Howlite's hand reached out to touch her's.

Even her voice was as clear as it was when they first met. _"Come with us, Howlite. We won't let you suffer anymore,"_ She said it with such kindness, such earnestness, and such ingenuity that he couldn't resist the allure of a life without suffering.

"Things haven't been the same since Rose disappeared," Pearl found herself crossing her arms, walking up to the kitchen counter. Her turquoise eyes adopted a wistful look as she stared up at the ceiling. Howlite glanced at the woman in the picture, with her curly pink hair and angelic white dress. "She was everything to me. To all of us."

"You really like her, don't you?" Howlite asked.

"It's...more than that," Pearl mused. "Without her, I...I'm...nothing."

Howlite found himself speechless. Did Pearl really feel that way about herself? He remembered the war, when Pearl's physical body would be destroyed every time she would save Rose from whatever enemy they faced. She would always reform, and back to Rose's side she went. They seemed to stick together like glue. Pearl always looked so radiant in his eyes. But without Rose, she was nothing? Howlite couldn't rationalize such a thought.

"No!" He exclaimed, his voice louder this time. "That's not true!"

Pearl shifted her gaze onto him, her turquoise eyes large with surprise. "Howlite…?"

"You're not nothing! It doesn't matter if you're a pearl!" Howlite added, his conviction strong. "You're an amazing Gem, and no one can compare to you! You're the reason I've managed to keep going in spite of all the pain and suffering I had to live through! You're strong, brave, kind, and you're always true to yourself, no matter what anyone else says about you!" Pearl could see his fists trembling, even as he kept his stance rigid and composed. Did Howlite really think of Pearl that way? She had no idea. "All my life, Gems have always been cruel to me, using me for their own ends, nothing more. But you...you're the first Gem who ever treated me like I was on your level, like I actually deserved respect and dignity!"

The grey Gem's heart was racing, dying to get those feelings out. Finally, he undid the lid, and everything came spilling out. There was no use denying it or putting it off any longer. Time to tell her everything he had kept concealed in his heart all these millennia. "You're the first Gem who didn't use me for your own ends! You and the others have been so kind to me, and even when I was scared or couldn't fight, you accepted me and understood me...for who I was!"

"Howlite…" Pearl couldn't put two words together. She could see it in Howlite's eyes. Everything he said was genuine. For a brief moment, her heart stopped.

"That's why…"His throat suddenly clamped shut. _'No! Tell her, Howlite! Tell her! You've already come this far! Come on! You can't hide them forever!'_ He scolded himself for suddenly clamming up. With all the courage he could muster, he blurted out, "That's why…" Before finally shouting, at the top of his voice, "I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you!"

The silence that came afterward was even more deafening than Howlite's shouting. There were no words exchanged between them for a full minute. All Pearl could do was stare as Howlite bowed before her, confessing his feelings. Her cheeks turned a light turquoise. She had no idea Howlite felt this way about her. All her life, she had completely dedicated herself to Rose and Rose alone. She thought Rose was the only Gem who treated her as a Gem, not as a glorified piece of furniture meant to hold someone's stuff and look pretty. To think that Howlite felt this way about her…

Rose flashed through her mind once more. "I…"

' _Whelp. I finally did it,'_ Howlite felt as though an immense weight had been magically lifted off of his entire being. Finally, he told Pearl how he felt. He kept his eyes squeezed shut, unable to look her in the eyes.

"I...I'm sorry."

Howlite's eyes slammed open as he looked up at Pearl. What was she apologizing for? The despondent look on her face seemed to set up a scenario that Howlite wasn't looking forward to. "Howlite, I...I had no idea...you felt this way about me."

"Are...are you mad?" He asked, his voice trembling.

"No. No, how could I be? I...I don't know what to say…" One word crashed into another as she and Howlite tried to make sense of what just happened. "I...I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"I...I appreciate that you think that way about me, and...I'm happy you look up to me like that, but…" Howlite looked down, fixating only on his feet. Already, he knew what she was going to say, silencing himself in preparation for the devastating blow. Pearl told him, in a calm, gentle voice that didn't hold any malice, "I...don't feel the same way about you."

' _I knew it…'_ Howlite couldn't hold back the hurt look on his face. Even so, he forced a smile, refusing to let Pearl see the pain in his heart. "I see. That's...okay. I know how much you love Rose," He replied. "Thank you for hearing me out."

Before he could walk away, Pearl got up from her seat and put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, Howlite," She reassured. "You'll find someone who will definitely love you. Rose and Garnet did, so I don't see why you can't."

As much as Howlite wanted to believe that, doubt gnawed at him like a hungry rat. He wasn't sure if someone would ever love him, or love him in a way that didn't involve being used for their own ends. But he wanted so badly to believe Pearl. Pearl, the Gem who in spite of rejecting Howlite, still wanted to support him and help him.

"Yeah. You might be right," Howlite stammered, this time marveling at how Pearl's peach colored hair reflected the sunlight coming through the windows. It almost resembled the color of human flesh.

"Well, I need to go check on my sword collection," Pearl reminded herself, marching toward the door in the temple. "I hope Amethyst hasn't been rummaging through it," She grumbled as the temple door swallowed her whole.

With that, Howlite was alone. This time, the feelings he had for Pearl had finally been released. He had hoped with all his heart that Pearl would return them, even though he suspected that she would reject him also. But now he knew for sure: Pearl didn't return his feelings. He told himself he didn't mind, that Pearl had always loved Rose, that even though she was his friend, that was as deep as their relationship could go. That was fine with him. He didn't mind. He had suspected that Pearl would reject him.

Even so...why did it hurt so much?

He had prepared for this...and yet his chest tightened. His grey eyes began to blur, drowning in a pool of tears. He slumped to the floor, not even managing to make it to the couch. He held his hands up to his face to push the tears back, not wanting to cry, but they just kept coming. They refused to go back inside. Sobs began to escape also. Before long, Howlite was back in the fetal position, with his legs barely folded and his face protected by his barrier-like hands.

"Steven!" Connie came through the front door without even knocking. She was dressed in her favorite aqua green overalls and orange shoes. Resting in one of her arms was a large book the size of a brick, the weight taking the energy out of her skinny arms. "Steven! Where are you?" Steven was nowhere to be found. She finally noticed Howlite and said, "Hey there, Howlite! Have you...seen…?"

All it took was for Howlite to pull his face out of his hands and stare at her for her to fall silent. Howlite's cheeks were drowning in tears, and the hurt on his face was enough to make Connie put the book down on the floor. Her smile faded, like it was never there. She had seen Howlite be sad before, but never to this extent. She kneeled down to his level with a worried expression. "Are...you okay, Howlite?"

The only answer she got was Howlite throwing his arms around her and sobbing quietly, his tears rolling onto her shoulder, mingling with her thick, raven black hair. Once again, Connie was speechless. What happened to Howlite to render him to such a disheveled state? Something had to have happened.

"I…" Howlite finally spoke, but one word crashed into the next, and he could barely choke anything out without sobbing. "I...I knew she'd reject me...I prepared myself to accept it...that I was fine with whatever decision she made…" Howlite cried, clinging to the girl like she was the only thing keeping him together. "...I accepted it, and yet...it still hurts!"

Howlite's explanation was all over the place, but oddly for Connie, it wasn't too hard to follow. It all seemed to make some sort of sense. Granted, she was no expert on asking someone out, be it a boy or a girl, but she knew Howlite needed someone right now. All she could do was stroke his back with one hand and say, "It's okay. I'm here."

The grey Gem cried and cried until he couldn't cry anymore. His throat grew dry and his eyes became heavy. Finally, he let go of Connie and wiped his tears away. "I...I'm sorry, Connie," He whimpered, his voice still having a subtle cry to it. "I...I shouldn't have put you through that."

"It's okay. That's what friends are for! The least I could do was listen," Connie affirmed, putting one of her hands on his. Her calloused hands were still warm and soft, pushing away the last of the sadness that Howlite still had. A smile touched his grey face as he wiped the last of his tears.

"Thank you, Connie. You're the best. Oh!" Howlite stood up. "I made something for you!" He raced to Steven's room, grabbed the last Cookie Cat doll he made, and handed it to her.

To say Connie reacted exactly the way Howlite imagined was fitting, as the girl's eyes widened with joy. With a radiant smile, she took the doll and cradled it in her arms. "Wow! You really made this for me?" Howlite answered with a nod. Soon, Connie was the one hugging Howlite, wrapping her arms around him, Cookie Cat doll included. "Thank you sooooo much! This is so great!"

"You're welcome," The despair that lingered in his heart was drained away, filling up with joy instead. Both Connie and Steven liked the Cookie Cat dolls he made for them. All that hard work he put in was absolutely worth it. He never did get used to feeling appreciated, loved, accepted, and adored, even after he was saved from Golden Beryl. Even with Carnelian still on the run, Howlite had forgotten all about him. Right now, all he could do was lose himself in his mind.

Since Steven wasn't home, Howlite kept Connie company so she wouldn't feel weird being in Steven's house all alone. She had brought a book on nature to show Howlite, and the two of them found themselves palavering on and on about the different kinds of flora and fauna existing in this world. Tiny flowers the size of a fingernail, large flowers the size of Howlite's head, trees living for several millennia...the possibilities that nature held were endless. None of these things existed on Homeworld. Howlite had never seen such beautiful things. Again, he wondered why he wasn't born a human rather than a Gem.

Before long, the Gems and Steven returned from their mission, and Steven was all too happy to see Connie again. He realized he hadn't shown Howlite all of Beach City yet, so he and Connie escorted the grey Gem around, hoping this tour would go better this time around. This time, Howlite felt a lot better about it. He just watched as he passed by lots of buildings, houses, and other venues with Steven and Connie by his side.

"This is Fish Stew Pizza," Steven explained, showing Howlite one of his favorite places. The pizzeria was just a small white building with the front being taken up by three large windows and a see-through door. The roof had red and light green stripes painted on it, along with a pizza emblem right in the middle, with the words _'Fish Stew Pizza'_ written on it in white letters. "They have the best pizza around!" Steven exclaimed, holding his hands into the sky. "But Garnet and Amethyst don't like it though, and Pearl doesn't like eating so she's never tried it."

"I don't mind their pizza too much," Connie added. "But my parents won't let me eat pizza most of the time."

"How come?" Howlite raised an eyebrow.

"They say pizza has lots of saturated fat which increases a person's chances of high cholesterol or heart disease," She explained, rolling her eyes. "But seriously, one little slice isn't going to kill me!"

"I can't imagine that happening," Howlite could barely stifle a laugh.

Steven took Howlite by the hand and escorted him to the building right next door. "This is Beach Citywalk Fries!" Howlite looked up. Like Fish Stew Pizza before it, Beach Citywalk Fries was just a white building taken up by big windows, but it didn't have a see through door. Embedded on the top of the building was a large cut-out of a bag of French fries, with pink ovals on it reading _'Beach Citywalk Fries'_ in black and yellow letters. "This is where I get my favorite food, Fry Bits!"

"Fry...Bits?" Connie asked as she and Howlite raised eyebrows in unison.

"What are those?" Howlite inquired.

The young boy was quick to greet another boy his own age standing behind the counter. The boy in question had yellow hair resembling a pile of noodles. "Hey, Steven!" The noodle-haired boy replied in a husky voice. "I take it you want some Fry Bits, right?"

"Yessiree, Peedee!" Steven threw some coins onto the counter. One of them almost fell onto Peedee's side of the counter, but the noodle haired boy squatted down to grab it before it could fall. Connie and Howlite ambled up to the counter right as Peedee handed them the bag.

"Here you go, Steven," Peedee said.

"Thanks! By the way, this is Howlite, my new friend!" Steven gestured for Howlite to come closer. The grey gem silently waved his hand back and forth. "He's kinda shy, though."

"I know the feeling," Peedee replied. Before the four of them could engage in conversation, a loud crash thundered in the back of the fast food place. It was so loud, it made everyone almost jump up at least half a foot in the air. "Awwww, no!" Peedee's small hands ran through his noodle-like hair. "Sorry, guys. I gotta take this," He told them before shouting in the other direction, "Ronaldo! Did you break a plate again?!"

Once that was over, Steven and the others found themselves walking back to the Big Donut. Steven rummaged through the mucky bag and pulled out some small, yellow squares, holding them up to Howlite. "These are Fry Bits. Want to try one? They're really good?"

Howlite had long gotten past hesitating to eat new food, so he just took a piece and threw it in his mouth. The crunchy square burned his tongue as his teeth made contact, and Howlite found himself grimacing in pain. Both Steven and Connie could see it in his face. The grey Gem was quick to swallow it once he finished chewing, but even as it went down his throat, the Fry Bit burned as it went down his esophagus, assuming he had one.

"You...like these?" He croaked.

"I like them," Steven replied. "Why? You don't like it?"

"I'll be honest," Connie interrupted. "I'm not a fan either. My parents would never let me eat these, and...they are a little greasy for me."

"Sorry, Steven," Howlite averted the boy's gaze. "I guess they're just not for me," He told him ruefully. Howlite hated saying this, as Steven had gone to all the trouble of giving some to him. Oddly enough, Steven didn't look hurt at all. Instead, the boy flashed a smile.

"That's okay," Steven told him reassuringly, putting a hand on the grey Gem's arm. "I think I'm the only one in Beach City who really likes Fry Bits anyway."

Connie gave him a mischievous glare. "Maybe if you eat a whole lot of them, you'll turn into a Fry Bit!" Both children burst into laughter. Even Howlite couldn't hold back a chuckle.

When he looked up, he saw a small boy coming within their vicinity. He looked to be just a head smaller than Steven, with a round, pale yellowish head that resembled an onion, topped by a measly tuft of yellow hair that looked more like a dollop of mayonnaise. The boy was wearing a long sleeved white shirt, a blue scarf around his neck, and red pants. Steven looked up, noticing Howlite staring off into the distance. It was when he looked in his direction that he saw the yellow boy up ahead.

"Hi, Onion!" Steven greeted him cheerfully, waving his hand back and forth.

Onion said nothing as he waved back.

"That's Onion," Steven explained to the grey Gem. "He doesn't say much, kinda like you."

When Connie looked to wave at him, Onion found himself staring at the concrete beneath his feet, watching intently as a small black spider trotted right by him. The spider didn't look to be afraid of the gargantuan creature, as it just trotted by without a care in the world. However, Onion lifted one of his feet off of the ground before jamming it right onto the spider. Crunch, went the spider's corpse as the giant foot squashed its remains into the concrete, not helped that Onion moved his foot back and forth to make sure the spider was completely dead.

As soon as Onion lifted his foot off the ground, he trotted away. "Awwww, poor spider," Steven mused, pitying the poor spider who lost its life. "Onion's kinda weird like that. But don't worry-"

Howlite stared at the spider's corpse with his grey eyes so wide that they seemed as though they were going to pop right out of his face. The expression he had was enough to render both children silent, as the grey Gem looked as though he had witnessed a traumatizing event that scarred him for life. He just stood there, unmoving, staring with naked fear. Steven and Connie exchanged confused glances.

"Howlite?" Connie was the first to ask, her voice close to bordering on worried. "Is something wrong?"

Both of them could tell that something wasn't right, but Howlite didn't answer. Actually, it seemed more like he couldn't answer. He continued to stand there and stare at the dead spider, like he was frozen in ice. The tension around him was so thick, one could easily cut it with a knife. That was when Howlite did something that completely knocked the wind out of the kids.

An ear-splittingly loud, primal scream escaped from Howlite's entire being as his hands flew to his face. Steven and Connie's hands both flew to their ears, it was such a bizarre, animalistic sound alien to them. But the two of them could hear something within it: pain.

"Howlite!" Steven yelled. "Howlite, what's wrong?!"

"Tell us!" Connie pulled on one of his arms. "What's going on?!"

Howlite couldn't answer, as he couldn't stop himself from screaming like he was being bloodily murdered. In fact, his screams were so loud, Lars and Sadie stormed out from the Big Donut to see what was going on. All Howlite did was fall to his knees, continuing to scream. Sadie was quick to run to the scene.

"Steven, what's wrong?" She asked.

"I don't know!" Steven cried as Howlite bent over. "We were just saying hi to Onion and he just started screaming all of a sudden-"

Right then, Howlite lurched forward, grabbing Sadie's hand and letting out an even louder scream, hoarse and primal like a dying animal. All Sadie could do was stand there and stare, her eyes wide with a combination of confusion and fear. Just what was going on? Every single one of them was helpless to do anything. What could they do? Finally, Howlite's eyes closed and he fell to the concrete, unconscious. Steven managed to grab him so he wouldn't fall and hurt his head.

"I'll go get the Gems! They might know what to do!" Connie shouted before storming back to the temple. The Gems needed to know about this.

"Howlite…" Steven looked down at the now unconscious grey Gem. Other than his ears ringing and seagulls cawing on the wind, the beach had become eerily silent.

* * *

Once Connie brought the Gems over, Garnet threw Howlite on her back and the Gems took him home quickly. But upon returning to the temple, all they did was gently tuck Howlite into Steven's bed and cover him with the blanket, like he was just coming down with a cold. Steven and Connie didn't understand, but they wanted to. What happened to Howlite, and would just letting him rest really help?

"Thank you for letting us know about this," Pearl told the kids, but they could tell her voice had a twinge of worry to it. "I'm sure you must have been quite scared."

"What is going on, anyway?" Amethyst inquired as she sat on the counter. Not proper behavior for a woman, but Amethyst was not one to care for societal rules, and liked it that way. "Yo, Pearl, Garnet. You guys know somethin' about this? He's your friend!" Amethyst wasn't there when the Gems knew Howlite, so she never knew him until now.

Garnet ambled over to the kids and kneeled down to their level. "Can you tell us what happened from the beginning? In detail, please."

"Well...we saw Onion and we said hi," Steven began.

"And we saw him kill a spider right in front of us," Connie finished. "Howlite started screaming right after that. It was sooooo freaky!" The girl found herself shivering. "He was screaming like he was being murdered."

Garnet stood up. "I knew it."

"Huh?" Once again, Steven and Connie exchanged glances. Knew it? "Oh yeah! You have Future Vision! You must have seen it, right?"

"Actually, Steven…" Pearl interjected. "This isn't the first time that's happened."

"How so?" Connie asked.

They knew something, and the kids could hear it in their voices. Garnet adjusted her visor before explaining. "Howlite has a strange ability," She began, keeping her voice calm and composed. "When a Gem is broken completely, or if any sentient life except plant life dies within his vicinity, he can feel and sense the pain they experience as they die."

Both children found themselves speechless. So Howlite can feel the pain that living beings that are dying or killed go through? No wonder he started screaming at the top of his lungs and collapsed. Steven wondered if Howlite felt like he was being crushed under Onion's foot, just like the spider was. Such a cruel concept was too much for these children to even think about, even more so about how Howlite must feel about having this ability.

"We...had no idea…" That was all Connie could say.

"Duuuude. That's gotta suck real bad," Amethyst piped in. As usual, her choice of words were crass and unprofessional, not that she cares. Everyone else was used to it, and they didn't mind. In fact, what she said fit Howlite's situation perfectly: feeling the deaths of others must really suck. There was no other way to put it. No wonder Howlite was always so scared and timid.

"Oh!" Pearl's eyes widened, her mouth made an O shape, and her hands flew upward. "I remember now!" She exclaimed. "Carnelian was the one who kidnapped Howlite and wanted to take him back to Golden Beryl before!"

"Wait...they kidnapped him?" Connie asked. "What did they want with him?"

Garnet crossed her arms. "During the Gem War, Earth was still being sought after as the sight of a colony," She explained. "Millions of Gems were shattered in battle, but no one really knows the entire death toll. No one but…" She looked up at Steven's room.

Both Steven and Connie looked up as well. Howlite was still sleeping. He didn't stir one bit. "How would Howlite know how many Gems were shattered?"

"Howlite can not only feel the pain the Gems that are shattered feel, but his body can calculate exactly how many die," Garnet explained further. Pearl put a hand over her own mouth, averting Garnet's gaze like she saw something disgusting.

Connie and Steven's eyes both grew large. The implications of what she said immediately came together. "So...they wanted to...use Howlite...as a living body counter?" Steven had no idea what word to use to describe what they wanted Howlite to be.

A simple nod from Garnet made Steven clench his teeth. How could anyone, human or Gem, want to take advantage of Howlite like that? Or anyone like him? Using their ability to keep track of how many people they killed in a war...Steven had no words for this. Actually, yes he did. Awful. Horrible. Degrading. Disgusting. Inconceivable. He wanted to cry. So did Connie. All Connie could do was put a hand around his shoulder.

"Howlite...I can't imagine the pain he...must have endured," Steven sputtered. A single tear came out from his eye, melting into his shirt collar.

No one could. Not to Howlite, anyway. Unbeknownst to them, he lay awake in the bed, overhearing the entire conversation. Unlike Steven, tears streamed out from both of his eyes, crossing his nose and melting onto the pillow's fabric. Howlite cried silently, wishing he could disappear. Not to get away from Steven, Connie, and the Crystal Gems. No, they had done too much for him. But...this ability overwhelmed him from day one. He wished with all his heart that he could get rid of it and live like a normal Gem. Or...maybe even a human.

Alas, he knew there was no wishing his ability away.

It took a few hours, but Howlite was back to his old self. Helping out around the house, keeping Steven and Connie company, sparring with the other Gems, fighting off monsters from time to time. For a while, things seemed as though they had returned to normal. Until one day…

"Howlite, look!" That morning, Connie had come over to show Howlite a book she had purchased. "The main character in this book reminds me so much of you," She exclaimed cheerfully. "Let's read it together!"

Howlite flashed a warm smile. "I'd like that."

As the two conversed, Amethyst laid down on the floor, scarfing a huge bag of potato chips. In fact, she just poured the entire bag into her mouth, and it overflowed with chips. Not even chewing them could prevent crumbs and remnants from scattering onto the floor. "You really shouldn't eat the whole thing at once," Steven advised, taking a paper towel to clean it up. "You could choke."

"Pfffft ha!" Amethyst laughed, swallowing the entire bag of chips whole. "We Gems don't choke, Ste-Man!" Ste-Man was yet another affectionate nickname Steven found himself on the receiving end of here and there.

"But you could get sick, like with that burrito you saved for five years!" Steven pointed out.

"Uuuuuugh. Good point," Amethyst groaned.

All of a sudden, a piercing sound made the entire house rumble. It was a bizarre, almost synthesizer-like sound that split their ear drums open. Everyone's hands flew to their ears, but not even that could block out the awful noise.

"What is that?!" Connie yelped.

Pearl came storming out from her room, holding a large brown and gold artifact in her hand, about Steven's size. In the center of the brown artifact was a round, hollow cavy that anyone could easily put their hand through. "Oh my goodness!" Pearl stumbled across the warp pad, barely managing to slam the artifact on the ground.

Finally, Garnet came out and pressed the button on the stone. The piercing sound stopped. "The Wailing Stone hasn't done that in years," Garnet concluded. "What-"

"Hello, Crystal Gems," A male voice echoed from the Wailing Stone's hollow cavity. "This is Yellow Diamond's disciple, Carnelian Facet 4T6X Cut-9MK transmitting from Homeworld to abandoned crystal system colony Earth," Howlite shivered. Connie and Steven ran up to the Wailing Stone to listen. "I know you have the Howlite that Golden Beryl has been seeking for all of these millennia," The voice was low and smug, almost bordering on creepy.

Pearl and Garnet exchanged fearful glances. In a way, they could predict what Carnelian was going to say next.

"I have reported your treason to Yellow Diamond," Carnelian told them through the Wailing Stone. "She is...how you say, choleric beyond reason," Neither Steven nor Connie knew what the world choleric meant. They had never heard such a word before, but based on how Carnelian used it, they assumed it meant angry. "It's a wonder how you all managed to evade her grasp after all these millennia. You'd best cherish what little freedom you have, because I, Golden Beryl, and my other escort have been assigned one mission only."

Everyone's eyes slammed open.

"To take you all to Homeworld and break you on charges of high treason and preventing the creation of a desired colony."

"NOOOOO!" Once again, Howlite screamed, but not as loud and as primal as he did before. He fell to his knees, his hands running through his short hair.

"It would do you great good not to defy your fate," Carnelian told them in a smug, holier-than-thou manner. "After all, parasites like you deserve to be broken, so as to prevent such issues like these for future progress. It gives me great pleasure to announce that we will arrive on Earth shortly and take you by force, no ifs, ands, or buts!" Even Amethyst found herself shivering at the unfamiliar voice.

"I bid you goodbye. Oh, before I forget," Carnelian continued with a malicious laugh. "Howlite? I'm sure you're well aware, but Golden Beryl is very angry that you chose to walk out on her, even after everything she did for you. Well, worry not, she will come and take you back soon. She'll be very happy to see you, and I expect you to be grateful. She may take pity on you and spare you the cruel fate of being broken. Oh, wait! Perhaps being with Beryl will be even crueller!" With that, the voice from the Wailing Stone ceased, and the room fell eerily silent.

The silence was broken by Garnet, who announced, "Alright, Gems! We have a lot to do!"

"They're coming for me!" Howlite cried, his face drowning in tears. "This is all my fault!"

Pearl ran to Howlite and firmly planted both hands on his shoulders. Looking him square in the eye, she told him, "Howlite, don't say that! This isn't your fault!" Seeing Howlite's tear ridden face wounded her heart.

"But you guys are gonna be put in danger! Who knows what they could do?!" Howlite protested. "Everyone here could get hurt or even die, all because they want to take me back!" Once again, he didn't make any effort to stop the tears from falling. "I...I can't go back...not there...I'd rather be broken completely...than go anywhere near Beryl!"

The pain in his voice tore everyone's hearts to pieces. What could they do? Just like before, Homeworld Gems were planning to come to Earth, with intent on taking them to their planet and executing them all. All because they wanted to save Earth.

* * *

 **Wooooo! My computer's fixed! Sorry I haven't updated. My computer was on the fritz for a week and all of my documents were on there so I couldn't work on any of my stories. But my Dad fixed it and now it's back! Expect more chapters of my stuff to come out soon!**


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